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Discussion

what to do with reference letter with poor grammar?

would you bring a recommendation by a former boss that is poorly written? there are grammer mistakes everywhere and the punctuation is terrible. however, it does state at the end something like "i would highly recommend her and she would be an assert to your staff" i already have four other references. i just feel like if i dont bring this one then they might question my employment there. thoughts?

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    • Featured Replies

    Hmmm, this is tough. The content is what you want, but the delivery method is less than desirable. Would it be possible to approach Miss Speller (or Mr Speller :)) in a non-judgmental manner? Say something like, "I wanted to thank you so much for the awesome referral that you gave me but I noticed there are a few grammatical errors in your recommendation. Is there anyway you would be able to correct it for me?"

    Tough call...

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    • Author

    unfortunately not. this recommendation was written a while ago and i no longer work there. the other recommendations are very good and well written. i keep on going back and forth myself, so i figure i'd ask you guys to be more opinions. if i do give them it, i'm just hoping its more of a reflexion on her than on me.

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    • Expert

    I wouldn't use it. The grammatical and spelling errors would call into question the credibility of the person who wrote it.

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    i'd have no problem using the letter.

    it reflects upon him poorly, not you.

    and we all know people who lack grammar and spelling skills.

    *shrug*

    i can't see you being penalized for having an untaught employer.

    leslie

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    • Author

    thanks for the input onc rn. that's what i'm afraid of. it was my former nurse manager. i was an aide while in school for a year, but the hospital was in bankruptcy and it just wasnt a good place to start working in as a new grad. i'm actually interviewing for an oncology position tomorrow and doing some last minute preparation.

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    • Author

    this is exactly the type of responses i expected. very mixed. i'm trying to put myself in my possible future employer's shoes. what would you think of a poorly written recommendation? i know this one reference wont make or break my chances, but it is one of many factors that could add up and tip the scale on way or another. thanks for everyone's input.

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    • Expert

    I would wonder if you got someone off the street corner to write the poorly done reference. I would find it difficult to believe that someone in a position of authority could not produce a credible written document.

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    Nah...leave it out. Employers typically just need 3 letters. What does your GUT tell you to do?

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    • Expert

    I remember asking a nursing supervisor for a reference one time. She gave me a poorly written effort that was only about three sentences long. Since this person was very articulate, I took her poor effort as a backhanded way to let me know she really did not want to do it. I threw the letter away as I could not use it for the intended purpose.

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    I wouldn't use it. You already have 3 well done recommendations, don't worry about it. I actually sort of went through this myself recently, my supervisor LOVES me but cannot spell to save her soul. I thought about asking her for a reference, and immediately decided against it. Although I know she'd be happy to, I figured that I, much like yourself, already have 3 good recommendations and I felt like whoever was reviewing my references/recommendations would be so distracted by the poor spelling that they wouldn't be able to take the recommendation seriously.

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