Ask Dr. Johnson: Should I file a complaint against my recommendation writer?

Dear Dr. Johnson,

I asked one of my professors to write me a letter of recommendation for graduate school. I made the ask about 2 months in advance of the recommendation letter deadline. They said they would be happy to do it and asked me to send them reminders, which I did. 3 days before the deadline, the letter was still not submitted so I sent an email reminder every day, called their phone and left messages, and tried to find them in person, but received no reply and couldn't reach them. They did not submit the recommendation letter and now my applications will not be considered. I am so upset given how much work I put into my applications. Should I file a complaint against them or will that cause me harm? What are my options?

- Ghosted

From Dr. Vicki Johnson:

I’m very sorry to hear about this situation. I wish I could say getting ghosted by a recommendation writer is very rare, but I hear stories like this every year. Even with the best intentions, preparations, and reminders, we have no control over whether someone else will write and submit a letter of recommendation by a deadline. It’s frustrating and I hear you!

But let’s talk about your next steps and the outcomes these would achieve.?

First, let the universities know right away that you have been unable to reach your referee and see if there is any possibility the recommendation letter deadline could be extended. The answer may be no, but it is worth asking.

In case you receive an extension, quickly line up another recommendation letter writer now as best you can. If needed, politely contact the university Department the professor worked in to let them know the situation. Do not make the outreach about your complaint; put all your focus on achieving a positive letter from the Department based on your academic performance. Perhaps in this process, you’ll find out why your former professor did not respond.?

Now, you could file a formal complaint against the professor with the university, but what would be the purpose other than revenge? A complaint could embarrass the professor and prompt them to respond to you and apologize, but it certainly won’t inspire them to write a positive letter now or in the future. And a formal complaint may only reflect poorly on you in a system taxed by much more serious offenses.?

Also, you still do not know why this person could not be reached in the last 3 days before your deadline. Consider some of the valid reasons they couldn’t be reached such as an illness or death of someone in their family (or even themselves). If there is a valid reason, would you regret filing a formal complaint?

Take this situation as a lesson to be more prepared in the future. Ask your referees to submit their letters 2 weeks before the deadline, and have 1-2 back-up referees that you can reach out to at the 2-week mark if need be. If you need to ask someone else for a last-minute reference letter, let the original referee know you are doing so, and be sure to prep the new referee with a business letter template and key bullet points they can include in the letter.

While you may not be able to fix the big problem of your applications being ineligible this round, if nothing else, you can re-apply with more preparation.

To be competitive, recommendation letters should be detailed and compelling. In my Fully Funded Course for graduate school applicants, I teach my mentees a system to prepare each referee with a folder of key documents that help their referees easily write 5 or more letters that are detailed and tailored to each graduate program and fellowship. When my students have taken these steps, they often report that their referees were so impressed and appreciative of the support they wrote exceptionally strong recommendation letters.?Try this for your next round!

Dr. Vicki Johnson is Founder and Director of ProFellow, the world’s leading online resource for professional and academic fellowships. She is a four-time fellow, top Ph.D. scholar, Fulbright recipient, and an award-winning social entrepreneur. She is the creator of the Fully Funded Course and Mentorship Program for graduate school applicants, which has helped hundreds of graduate school hopefuls enter top master's & PhD programs with full funding awards.

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