As you build your empire you will be increasing your headcount. You need to get quality headcount in order to maximise the marginal added value to your career. Here are some handy hints on how to interpret reference letters for candidates you may consider:
Reference Letter Language | Actual Meaning |
I have known the candidate since… | I owe the candidate’s supervisor a favour, and so am writing this based on the information in the SMS message sent by the supervisor |
The candidate is well known in the field. | I rejected one his papers from a conference |
The candidate is a real team player | He relies on others to do the work |
The candidate has made significant individual contributions | Nobody else in team will work with him |
He is “good” | I can not think of anything else to say; he has done nothing. |
He has a deep knowledge… | He is incredibly narrow and knows nothing outside of his field |
Amongst the best 25% of students I have ever supervised | I have had crappy students |
Has written a surprising number of papers | Surprising because each had very little to say |