I have a pretty important job interview coming up, and they want three recommendations. I’m going back and fourth between who I want to ask. My options are:
My current supervisor. He LOVES my work and has mentioned multiple times that he would be happy to enthusiastically recommend me. And I’ve done some really cool work with him. But I’ve only worked with him for a month and a half, and it’s not exactly the same field (although a lot of the actual work I’m doing is relevant)
A professor who I have currently. She is extremely enthusiastic about this position and spontaneously offered to recommend me. And I mean she is extremely excited about this. She’s moderately well known in the field and has published some stuff that the interviewers will recognize. But I just started in her class so she doesn’t have a lot to work with. I’d plan to send her some of my writing and talk to her a bit about my history, but in reality we don’t have a huge working history.
Another professor who I’ve worked with more and have a couple years of history with. He seems to like me well enough and is much more familiar with my achievements, but probably doesn’t have as much enthusiasm as professor #2.
An American supervisor I worked with on a summer internship who was enthusiastic about me and liked my work, but the project ultimately was not really a success (for reasons mostly beyond my control.) He’ll be enthusiastic, but he’s not really affiliated with any organization.
A well-known traditional chief I worked with on project #4, who will say all kinds of wonderful things about me. He may be able to speak to my cross-cultural skills, which will be extremely relevant.
My supervisor in China with a well-known US agency who will say good things about me, but wasn’t really too personally involved in my work. She contributed to my grad school recommendations, so she is familiar with what I’ve done and likes me pretty well (we met up last time she was in the US.) She’ll be enthusiastic, but her recommendation might seem a bit polite.
A colleague in China who will say really good things about me, and who knows me pretty well. She’ll be able to give a much more personal perspective on my work there than supervisor #6. But she’s not affiliated with a well-known organization in a leadership roles (though she has done some work with one.) Mostly, she’s a Chinese college teacher that I knew well. She’ll be able to speak to cross-cultural skills, though.
A supervisor from a part-time think tank job last year who will be extremely enthusiastic, but the work is not particularly relevant. I worked with her for six months.
I keep in good touch will all of these people, and they all have said in the past they’d recommend me. Any ideas on who I should pick?
I would instantly eliminate #7. Not a supervisor, so less important.
Other than that it’s hard to guess which 5 out of 7 you should pick because a lot of it, to be quite honest, is how you think they’ll sound on the phone and how well they’ll play the phone interview game. None are BAD choices, so really you have to ask yourself which five will best do the conversation.
If you’re the type of person who can come up with that many good potential references, my guess is it doesn’t matter too much which ones you pick. In my experience (which probably isn’t typical, when I think about it), my references were basically used to ensure that A) My resume isn’t completely fraudulent and B) I’m not an asshole/addicted to drugs/weirdo who doesn’t bathe. The fact that you have so many people willing to say nice things about you means you should pass the sniff test.
That said, I’d go with one professor, one former supervisor, and the traditional chief. The first two can vouch for your academic and workforce prowess, and the third sounds cool (and can also say nice things about your work). My guess is whomever is hiring you has talked to lots of supervisors and professors, not so many tribal leaders. If their are lots of applicants, it could help you stand out.
An SDMB mod.
If none are willing, I’d go with 1, 3, and 5. You don’t want more than one short-term reference (unless you’re sure that neither the reader nor writer will be aware of time-frames), and as an employer I’d be more swayed by a work supervisor than two professors.
The ‘other’ professor has the familiarity and length to make up for any perceived enthusiasm gap (unless the professor is tepid about recommending you) and a positive recommendation that doesn’t come across as effusive could be a plus. That gives you work and academic references.
The third is also work-related, but as you said speaks to a broader set of qualifications. It’s hard to imagine the overall success of the project even coming up or being considered relevant to how you performed/will perform. Plus, I believe we’re in the same general field (institutional development work with a gender focus?), and I can’t tell you how many projects I’ve seen crash and burn despite great people working on them—who then go on to other projects that also crash and burn until they join a successful team. Further, the interviewer will (likely; there’re no absolutes) be more interested in the skills and performance you’re capable of rather than the project’s outcome.
Another benefit of the third is as an interview conversation topic. Everyone will have professors and former supervisors, but a ‘tribal chief’ inspires questions right off the bat—that could be a huge opening to bring up positive aspects of your work and background.
Looks like I’ll be making a call to South Africa. The interviewer will certainly be interested in cross-cultural skills. I stayed with the chief and his family for three months, living as one of the family- sharing meals, watching South African soap operas at night, walking the kids to school- and he will have a lot to say about how I worked with the royal family, the tribal council, and the community as a whole.