Referee didnt give reference

Airyfairy12

Hi wondering if anyone can help/offer advice!

I recently got a conditional job offer, the conditions I have to meet are to have two referees fill out reference forms and for them to send them on confidentially to the manager. The reference form is mostly ticking boxes and answering some yes/no questions & including a small paragraph of feedback. I dont think it would realistically take more than 10 or 15 minutes to fill out. I had to put down an academic & professional (recent employer) reference.
When applying to the job I contacted the course head of my postgrad who id worked closely with throughout the year of the course. He emailed back almost immediately and said he would be delighted to be my referee.

So a few weeks later I was sent the reference form & I sent it to my referee's, my previous employer filled it out and sent it on straight away, even text me to tell me and say good luck with the application.
After about a week I hadnt heard back from my academic referee so contacted the manager asking if it had been sent and they said no. I contacted my referee thinking he might have just forgot but he didnt reply to this email either.
The final date for the references to be sent to the new manager was today and that is clearly stated at the top of the reference form.

Feel like im screwed now and im going to miss out on this opportunity because he didnt fill out the form.

Can anyone suggest anything?

User142

Have you tried ringing him?

godtabh

Or using some one else?

Airyfairy12

User142 wrote: »

Have you tried ringing him?

No I think that might be overkill! im sure he's seen my emails!

Airyfairy12

Airyfairy12 wrote: »

No I think that might be overkill! im sure he's seen my emails!

If the reference is that important, make a call.

This happens all the time (speaking from the HR side!) - talk to the Manager and ask if you can provide an alternate reference (assuming you have one?) as you're having some difficulty tracking the academic one down. This thing has become more prevalent during covid so an understanding manager should work with you to resolve it. Also if the guy isn't responding to your emails I would call him - no overkill about it when a job offer is on the line.

athlone573

Airyfairy12 wrote: »

No I think that might be overkill! im sure he's seen my emails!

I don't understand the reluctance on the part of some Millennials to pick up the phone for what should be a simple conversation.

Try get another reference, or call the guy. Its not too much if your job is on the line. .

One good thing here is that the company want you, and they don't want to restart the hiring process. Nobody likes that. However they have a procedure that HR has imposed.

jimmycrackcorm

Airyfairy12 wrote: »

No I think that might be overkill! im sure he's seen my emails!

How does he know it's required as urgently as you say?

Airyfairy12

Thanks everyone.
I dont know who else to ask? I emailed another lecturer who I worked closley with and who gave me a great refereance before but I dont have her number and she's since retired from the university so hasnt replied to me. She mightned use that email address anymore. I finished my undergrad course nearly 10 years ago and dont have contact info for any of my old tutors. Im sure many of them dont even work in the college anymore.

I might try and ring him tomorrow but then dont want to pressure him into if he doesnt want to just wish he had told me in the first place if he couldnt/wouldnt be reference for me - although I don't know why? I did really well on the course.. what ever the reason is, he should have told me so I could sort something else out.

Airyfairy12

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

How does he know it's required as urgently as you say?

It says it on the top of the form

dobman88

Ring him now. Not tomorrow. The deadline is today. He quite possibly has just forgotten and after the phone call you will have it by tonight.

Hi mr reference man, just a call to ask about the reference I need. The deadline is today so I was wondering if you could possibly send it over this evening please.

Him: oh my God, I'm so sorry, it completely slipped my mind. I'll get that done now and send it over. Please accept my apologies.

You: no worries, these things happen. Thanks very much.

Job done.

An Ri rua

Airyfairy12 wrote: »

It says it on the top of the form

No disrespect, but for someone who wants this opportunity enough to be seeking advice on this, you're now coming across as airy fairy. It may well be on top of the form. And for you that's obvious. For someone else with other competing priorities, it's neither here nor there.

Make the call.

The Mighty Quinn

An academic reference required a decade after leaving education sounds like a crazy requirement.

If its to prove you have the qualifications you say you do there are other means, transcripts of results etc.

Is this an academic role?

micah537

With students currently doing exams, there is a chance he's on holidays.

Their numbers should be on the college website if there is another lecturer you can call

Pistachios & cream

Could you check with the new job if you actually require an academic reference? As you said it’s been 10 years since you graduated so how relevant would it be. Maybe a second employer reference would be acceptable.

If I were you I’d get in touch with the new job, explain that lecturers have moved on and you can’t get a response from your last contact in the department and ask would another employer reference suffice?

As an aside, presuming your academic referee is 3rd level, than this is a very busy time as exams are on around now.

Airyfairy12

Pistachios & cream wrote: »

Could you check with the new job if you actually require an academic reference? As you said it’s been 10 years since you graduated so how relevant would it be. Maybe a second employer reference would be acceptable.

If I were you I’d get in touch with the new job, explain that lecturers have moved on and you can’t get a response from your last contact in the department and ask would another employer reference suffice?

As an aside, presuming your academic referee is 3rd level, than this is a very busy time as exams are on around now.

No, my undergrad was 10 years ago, my postgrad was recent! I was replying to a comment that asked why I dont ask someone else, I was just explaining that I didnt know who else to ask at this stage as my only other option would be my undergrad from 10 years ago and ive no contact info for those tutors.

I understand its a busy time, Ill contact the new job tomorrow and try to sort something out.
Thanks,

Jim2007

Airyfairy12 wrote: »

No I think that might be overkill! im sure he's seen my emails!

Well unless you were sitting beside him you have no idea if he saw your emails... he might not be able to access his email, someone other than him might have accessed them.....

Since you think it's overkill... just do nothing then.

Buddy Bubs

Give me his number, I'll ring him for you.
Seriously though, pick up the phone if you need something urgently.
Have this hassle in work with other staff members not getting things done and saying well, he never replied to my email so what more can I do??
Maybe I could start a thread on an internet forum and get advice. Or maybe I could ring him.

Not trying to belittle you but learn a lesson from it when you get the job, most jobs require good communication to get it done and don't rely on email all the time.

Be right back

Airyfairy12 wrote: »

No, my undergrad was 10 years ago, my postgrad was recent! I was replying to a comment that asked why I dont ask someone else, I was just explaining that I didnt know who else to ask at this stage as my only other option would be my undergrad from 10 years ago and ive no contact info for those tutors.

I understand its a busy time, Ill contact the new job tomorrow and try to sort something out.
Thanks,

Just try ringing him? Not sure why you wouldn't try that at least.

The Mighty Quinn

Buddy Bubs wrote: »

most jobs require good communication to get it done and don't rely on email all the time.

Where I work this is a big problem with any recent graduates, or people under 30 in general. They'll send an email and wait days for a response to a query instead of phoning and getting an immediate answer.

The Mighty Quinn

The Mighty Quinn wrote: »

Where I work this is a big problem with any recent graduates, or people under 30 in general. They'll send an email and wait days for a response to a query instead of phoning and getting an immediate answer.

But my email is important and I deserve/am entitled to a quick reply.

The Mighty Quinn

Dav010 wrote: »

But my email is important and I deserve/am entitled to a quick reply.

I think its largely a fear of direct contact with people, not used to communications that aren't Snapchat or Instagram. Combine that with often graduates will require technical information about something they don't fully understand themselves, so confidence is low and email seems to be the way to avoid a situation where they're uncomfortable.

Sky King

athlone573 wrote: »

I don't understand the reluctance on the part of some Millennials to pick up the phone for what should be a simple conversation.

Totally.

Also, any time I have ever used someone as a reference I have asked them first, usually, if possible, by phone rather than in writing.

Lux23

Academics are slammed at this time of year, some might already be correcting exams, attending exam boards and marking assignments, so I wouldn't take it personally. Just give them a call and ask if they received the reference; it might have gone into their spam if it is one of those agencies.

Tork

There is a time and a place for emails. When something this important is at stake, simply sending an email and expecting the other person to do what you ask of them is madness. You have no way of knowing if this man is working at the moment or if he even read your email. Even with the best will in the world, emails get missed sometimes. We also don't know if the importance of this registered with him when he scanned his inbox. I'm not somebody who enjoys ringing people I don't know very well but I learned long ago that a phone conversation is the best form of remote communication. Ring the man, don't be a gob****e.

OMM 0000

athlone573 wrote: »

I don't understand the reluctance on the part of some Millennials to pick up the phone for what should be a simple conversation.

"Sure it's grand I'll just lose this job because I'm too afraid to talk to people."

Hey young folk, I'm old, let me give you some advice: face to face is ideal for getting what you want, up next is telephone, then chat message, and finally it's e-mail.

And to make things worse, e-mails get moved into spam folders and never get seen.

If something is important to you, meet, call or at worst use WhatsApp or signal. Stop hiding behind emails.