Reference letter objectivity?

[aloeplant]

Hi everyone. I've heard that letter objectivity is one of the screens when reviewing reference letters for UofT. If a letter is deemed "unobjective" it is thrown out, which I presume would make the applicant ineligible for an interview invite.

 

Is this information correct? What makes a reference letter objective vs unobjective? For example, one of my potential letters will be from a co-president and co-founder of a student club. She is technically my peer as we are both undergrad students. Would this be an "unobjective" reference and result in my application being flagged?

 

Thanks so much for the clarification!

[Meridian]

I think you choice of reference in this case is not a good one.  Having another undergrad (peer) writing a reference letter could very well be discounted.  Instead, is there a University staff or faculty with oversight responsibility for this club that could better articulate what you achieved ?

[aloeplant]

4 minutes ago, Meridian said:

I think you choice of reference in this case is not a good one.  Having another undergrad (peer) writing a reference letter could very well be discounted.  Instead, is there a University staff or faculty with oversight responsibility for this club that could better articulate what you achieved ?

Thanks for the reply! Most uni clubs don't have staff or faculty oversight, unfortunately. I've been contemplating the peer as a reference because other potential character referees who aren't peers don't know me that well and won't be able to write stellar letters for me presumably. For example, the volunteer coordinator for hospital volunteers was replaced by another person, so I didn't have the chance to develop long term or meaningful relationships with either as I'm only there in the summer. My employment reference and community outreach reference are both family members/close family friends so that's also a nono. 

 

I do have a strong research referee and clinical/patient care referee. It's just the character referee that I'm having troubles with

[ar_1197]

If its a character referee you are still in need of don't be afraid to contact people you have connected with a long time ago. For example, I used one of my high school teachers that I was very close with, because I knew she could speak to my character. Although I haven't talked to her in 4 years she was still happy to help me out with my reference. So it may be the case where you don't have a long term relationship with any current professional people in your life but also think about teachers, supervisors, or professors in your past that you had long term relationships with.

[aloeplant]

On 5/8/2019 at 11:49 AM, arajani11 said:

If its a character referee you are still in need of don't be afraid to contact people you have connected with a long time ago. For example, I used one of my high school teachers that I was very close with, because I knew she could speak to my character. Although I haven't talked to her in 4 years she was still happy to help me out with my reference. So it may be the case where you don't have a long term relationship with any current professional people in your life but also think about teachers, supervisors, or professors in your past that you had long term relationships with.

I contacted a volunteer coordinator from highschool/early undergrad and they said yes! However, they no longer work at the volunteer place so they won't be able to provide an official letterhead  but something is better than nothing! Thanks so much for your help!