Resume Guide

SUNY Westchester Community College • Career Services Resume/Cover Letter Guidelines 2022-2024 24 J OB R EFERENCES Before a prospective employer will hire you, he or she will generally ask you to provide references from your former employers, professors and/or someone who can talk about your job or academic performance, skills, strengths and weaknesses, reliability, integrity and general character. Who do you ask to be a reference? Start by making a list of all your prospective references. ( Some employers will want both “professional” and “character” references .) You can include: • Supervisors or managers from your present or former job (especially one that might be relevant to the position you are seeking) • College Administrators or extracurricular advisors • Professors, teachers, counselors, coaches or others fromyour college or high school that know you well • Present or former co-workers (can include volunteer or community work) • Professional acquaintances from a college program or work situation For each potential reference, gather the following information: • Name • Title (if he/she has one) • Company or School Address (unless home) • Telephone number • Fax number • E-mail address Select those whom you think will be most willing to provide an excellent reference. Make sure to call all those you select and ask if it is okay to use them as a reference. Ask permission to include their address, phone number and email address. When a specific offer is on the horizon, let your references know the company’s name, your strengths for the open position and that you’d like to use them as a reference. Send them your updated resume, to help them have a more holistic view or your experience beyond what they already know of you. Do not give anyone’s name to a prospective employer before you check with the prospective reference . Speak with each reference and let him/her know what job you’re applying for and the qualities that the prospective employer is seeking. Ask your references whether they would enthusiastically recommend you. Make it clear that their reference might be critical to you getting the job! A sample reference list is on the next page