Entries Tagged 'The Dossier (Letters of Recommendation)' ↓

It used to be that dossiers (your letters of recommendation and sometimes teaching philosophies, writing samples, etc., but NEVER cover letters, which need to be tailored for every single ad you apply to) were hosted by an on-campus dossier service that would send those items out for you for free or a deep, deep discount compared to corporate services. Gone are those days. (At least at ISU.) However, corporate and online services have gotten much snazzier over the years and offer lots of good services for about the same price as those old-skool, on-campus services offered.

Generally speaking, we recommend Interfolio. It’s pricing structure is easy to understand and to choose which option you might want (one-year, multiple years, etc.) Which option you choose might depend on how good your chances are on the market given whatever your area of expertise is, but it’s always the case that the more years you choose to stay with Interfolio, the better the overall deal will be. None of this is to say that Interfolio is cheap, but all of it is relative to the number of applications you send out. Like the GREs and transcripts, there’s an initial fee and a per-dossier-sent fee. Check out their website for the most updated pricing structures. They even have document-scanning services for those of you who still prefer print (or can’t figure out how to use the e-letterhead. Oh wait, that’s your advisors

Also, check out this Profhacker post, which outlines excellent recommendations for thinking about compiling your dossier. No need to repeat good advice when you can go to the source!

The dossier is your set of letters of recommendation. See my post on how to set up your dossier through our Career Center. I also hope to post on using an online, digital dossier service, which is easier to use than you might think.

How Many Letters Should You Have?

Between 4 and 6 is ideal. 3 is the absolute minimum.

Who Should I Get Them From?

1. Definitely your dissertation advisor
2. The other readers on your dissertation committee
3. A faculty member who knows your teaching well (and if nobody does, invite someone you admire as a teacher to come to your classroom and observe you! Give her some sample syllabi and assignments!)
4. A faculty member or administrator with whom you work on a special project or in an administrative capacity. If you work at the CTLT, for example, ask someone there to speak to your enthusiasm for service. If you worked in the Writing Center (or our UCLA), try that. The pub unit, with faculty on a research mentorship, etc.
5. A faculty member at another institution that you know professionally and who can speak to your accomplishments and potential.
6. Any other faculty who knows your research well.
7. Someone in the department who is important in your field. If you haven’t worked at all with that person, send them a polite initial e-mail asking if they would consider writing a letter for you if you send a sample of your work.

updated Sept. 2011: ISU’s Career Center is no longer offering a dossier service for MA or PhD students. You will have to use an online system like Interfolio. See our new post about Interfolio.

Setting Up the File at ISU’s Career Center

Some schools offer a dossier service to students. At ISU, it’s through the Career Center. If you are a PhD Candidate at ISU, here’s how you set up a dossier with them:

1. Email Teri Lehr at the Career Center to set up an appointment. (tllehr at ilstu dot edu, 309-438-5635) The Career Center is located in room 110 of the Student Services Building, which is across from the Bone Student Center and at the intersection of University and College.
2. To the meeting, bring the following:
   • print copies (or send e-copies) of any documents you want included in your dossier. These would include your CV(s), letters of recommendation (or have letter writers email or deliver them to Teri), writing sample(s), teaching philosophies, sample teaching materials, research agenda, dissertation abstract, etc. Anything you think a job ad will require, save the cover letter, bring it to Teri.
   • a method of payment (cash, check, credit card — or see Billing option under Rates, below).
3. If you have a list of jobs you know you’re going to apply for, create an Excel spreadsheet (or similar) with all relevant mailing information and deadlines for each school, and Teri will take care that items are sent and email you (with your account balance) once each is sent. Any time you need to add a school to the list, email her the relevant information.

Rates

Teri will set up a dossier account for you, from which funds will be automatically deducted each time you request a set of materials be sent to a school. How much you want to put in your account depends upon how many jobs you think you will apply for. Keep in mind that it’s up to the individual schools/ads whether they allow for electronic submission, and although that option is becoming more and more popular, it’s unlikely you’ll have that option exclusively, so put *some* money into your account. You can get a refund for anything you don’t use once you’ve completed the job search.

• To send materials electronically to schools = Free (!)
• To send print materials to schools = $5/set (prepaid) or $10/set (billed).

Having Letters Sent to the Career Center

You should have all letters of recommendation sent to the Career Center. Your recommenders can send their letters by email (see above), or off/campus mail to:

Teri L. Lehr

Credentials Supervisor

110 Student Services Building

Campus Box 2520

Normal, IL 61790-2520

Electronic letters of recommendation must have digital signatures. ALSO NOTE THAT THE CAREER CENTER NO LONGER OFFERS CONFIDENTIALITY ON ANY OF ITS FILES. If you or your advisors require that your letters remain confidential (to you or others), you should use a third-party service like Interfolio.

Requesting Dossiers be Sent to Schools

To put in a request to have your dossier sent to a school, simply E-MAIL Teri at tllehr@ilstu.edu. (She does not take phone requests for dossiers; this is so she can keep track of your important information!) In your e-mail to her, specify:

1. the place you want your letters sent with their contact person and complete address as it should appear on the address label or the email address
2. which documents you want to include if you have special requests; otherwise, she will send your entire dossier
3. include your cover letter specific to those schools, and she can send it out with your other documents so the school only receives one “package” fro you
4. any other special requests you may have. Teri will do her best to do whatever you need her to do and if she doesn’t understand, she’ll get back to you.

When Teri receives your e-mail request, she will process it as soon as possible and send you a confirmation that she has sent the dossier. She will also update you on the balance in your account. If you find you will need more $ in your account, you can add to it at anytime. You can add in person or you can just give her your credit card # and information via e-mail or, if you feel more comfortable, over the phone at the # below.

Special Note for Those Applying for Different “Kinds” of Positions:

Say you’re applying for both faculty and administrative positions, but you do not want the same letters to go to both. Simply tell Teri when you open your file that you would like to have two collections of letters, one for ____ and one for _____. Specify to her either when you talk to her or via e-mail which letters should go in which collection. Then, when you put in requests for your dossier to be sent to a particular place, specify which collection (which letters exactly) you want her to send to that position.

Other Helpful Information

• You are fully reimbursed for any $ left in your account that you don’t use when you get a job or want to stop your file.
• Your file will remain in the Career Center and accessible, should you need it even after leaving ISU. They currently have files going back to the 1920s! That may change in the future, but for now you can assume your file will be there as long as you need it.
• If you are updating letters, just have the updated letters sent to Teri. You might e-mail her, also, to let her know that updated letters are on their way and which ones she should replace with those revisions.

Again, that contact information is:

Teri L. Lehr

tllehr@ilstu.edu

309-438-5635