References

shay_562

OK, I need some help from some of the older & more experienced boardsies here. In the middle of applying for an internship and I need to provide two references, one academic, one 'other'.

1) For the academic one, would I be better off going with my college tutor (who I haven't seen since Fresher's Week 2005, but can give details about my transcript etc) or a friendly lecturer (there's at least one who knows me well enough to mock me when I miss lectures, and I got a 2.1 in his Michelmas exam, so my academics there are acceptable) - which do you reckon they normally look for?

2) For "other", I was thinking my current manager - that'd be fairly standard, right? Or is there anyone else they'd typically look for?

Sorry if these are obvious questions, but the whole application process seems weird and full of its own little rules and idiosyncracies...

xebec

What type of internship are you applying for?

For the academic one I always use my college tutor who I don't see very often but is the obvious point of contact for a potential employer.

Your current manager is fine as a non-academic reference, as long as you make them aware that they may be approached by this company. The company shouldn't seek a reference till they've made you an offer of employment.

My background is an internship with an investment bank and successful applications to consulting firms, so this should be fine for you too.

europerson

I tend not to use my Tutor as a reference, because she doesn't know me very well. For an academic reference, I usually ask our friendly HoD. If there is a lecturer, with whom you get on particularly well, then there's no reason not to use him/her. Bear in mind that lecturers other than your Tutor will usually ask for a copy of your transcript though.

wowy

I went the friendly lecturer route (Pat McCabe, what a man....). I'd always go that ahead of the tutor, seeing as the lecturer actually knows you and what you're capable of (good and bad), whereas to the tutor, you could well just be a number (unless, like me, you're lucky in that your tutor has been teaching you last year and this. And that he's also a legend.).

Boston

Head of department or faculty head are good people to get in with for this type of thing. I suggest you write your own reference or pretty much what you want in it and ask them to rubber stamp it.

RAS and JoH are the two I am using at the moment Shay.

shay_562

Cheers for the replies guys.

xebec wrote:

What type of internship are you applying for?

PWC, so pretty much the same vein as you.

Deleted User wrote:

RAS and JoH are the two I am using at the moment Shay.

I was thinking Harrison - no classes with JoH since March of last year, and my results in RAS's classes have been mediocre at best. Plus, Harrison is a bit of a legend.

Boston wrote:

I suggest you write your own reference or pretty much what you want in it and ask them to rubber stamp it.

Would that it were that simple. All they want is the contact details of a reference, which is why I thought it would be better to have one that actually knows me instead of someone who will simply read my transcript out loud when called.

gilroyb

I'd definitely advise going with the friendly lecturer. There are hundreds of students in Trinity who aren't known by any lecturer. They'll be going to their tutor for references. By being able to give a lecturer you know as a reference it shows you were part of college rather than just attending a few classes. If they only wanted the transcript read out by someone, they'd ask for the transcript and read it aloud.