Crossing my fingers for luck -- and that no one calls.
© Martti Salmela, iStockphoto

Recently, a student asked me for a reference letter. No problem.

And then she needed three more. No real problem. I recycled the first one.

And then she asked for 10 with the promise to ask for 10 more.

I had to put the brakes on. We were heading for a wall.

She needed references for internships and mistakenly concluded that what she needed was the actual letters. That is usually not the case.

Usually, people who are hiring ask for references, but not the letters. That’s because they do not plan to read all those letters or follow up with all those people. Reference checking is the last step in the process and is used only for the finalists.

As I explained to the student, imagine how much work she would generate if she applied to 25 places and requested three letters of reference for each of them. Imagine how it is on the receiving end. At the Detroit Free Press, I could get 600 internship applications in a season. Almost all would arrive in a two-week window. Where would I find the time to read 1,800 letters?

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So, I explained. I told her she could use my name as a reference and I gave her a generic letter she could send to anyone. I told her I would generate a new letter — with the name of the employer at the top and into the body of the letter — if she needed one.

Case closed.

Until that night. Another student stopped into our class — while we were in session and with the student I just described there — and asked if I would be a reference for him. He has not been as diligent as most in attending class or hitting his deadlines.

So, what did I say when he asked in front of a classroom of people whether I would be his reference?

I told him yes.

And then I crossed my fingers, hoping that no one calls me and that he lands a job, anyway.