How many times do you decline writing a recommendation before you just go the fuck ahead and write "Susie Q has a marked attendance problems, is a suck up, says inappropriate things, and I suspect she got poor marks at Mediocre College Across Town because she says she has no way to contact the professor she took the first semester course with because she took it all the 3 miles away way over there."?
I just say "no" the first time, but I make it clear it's "no."
ReplyDeleteIf this person is back for seconds and thirds after earlier declines, it probably means she hasn't been able to garner much support from any other instructors either.
ReplyDeleteWhat did you have her in? For folks who I had in a 100 level course, with 200 other people, I simply tell them, I can't write a letter that will carry any weight due to the nature of evaluation in such a course. A letter from your XXXX 100 instructor will actually work against you.
If you end up being arm-twisted into it, just I say spend 3 minutes on it, drop in the usual cliches: You would be lucky to get Suzie Q to work for you. She clearly strived to overcome challenges by handing in required assignments, etc, etc. Love, Wombat.
One advantage of being percieved as "hard" is that I very rarely get recommendation requests that I'm unwilling to fulfill enthusiastically. The exception is internal recommendations for things like our teacher ed program, where there's a fairly substantial culture of "drop it on the desk of the last prof you had, no matter whether they know you from 50 other students in the hall, or give it to your academic advisor even though you've never taken a class from them." I resist, but the machine needs inputs....
ReplyDeleteI say, "OK, how do you spell, 'peckerhead'?"
ReplyDeleteOne.
ReplyDeleteWombat, I'm loving you today.
ReplyDeleteYou need to write this recommendation. The committee needs to know what they might get themselves into with this student. Keep it short, keep it polite, keep it honest.
We don't need another flake in charge of important things.
I'm torn between (a) just stop answering her emails (or start answering with the same short sentence each time, something along the lines of "I'm sorry I'm not able to write you a recommendation; I wish you the best in your future endeavors") or (b) what Monkey said. At this point, the only argument I can think of against (b) is that it might possibly harm your reputation with people who hew to the "only write if you can be positive" rule, or otherwise get you in trouble, either at your own institution or within your professional community (or, worst case, subject you to a lawsuit -- recommendations aren't really all that confidential). Also, if you do write a "recommendation," and she doesn't get into the program, isn't she just going to keep applying to other programs, jobs, etc. and using you as a reference?
ReplyDeleteEnticing as (b) is, I think the correct answer is (a).
Psh... I'd just be real with them. "I have nothing nice to say about you, so I won't say anything at all." One professor did that to me when I asked him if he would write me one to get accepted into an honors thesis course for my major. Respectably, he declined stating that I was not up to par with the other 300 level students, but if I were to "prove" myself to other faculty members in their area of expertise, I could possibly get one.
ReplyDeleteYes it stung - I love the man, but he was telling the truth. Honesty is the best policy.
Or you can take it to the next level: tell them to stop being harassing you or you will be forced to get a restraining order. :)