Does Your Letter of Reference Promote You?

Transcription

1 Does Your Letter of Reference Promote You? Sponsored by: WUSM Office of Training Grants WUSM Office of Faculty Affairs of Medicine - Office of Faculty Development

2 Workshop Agenda 11:30am Lunch, welcome and introductions 11:35am Overview of Reference/Promotion Letters Karen L. Dodson, MBA 11:55am Panel discussion Moderators: Angela Brown, MD & Mario Castro, MD, MPH Panelists: Melvin Blanchard, MD Susan Dutcher, PhD Jackie Fleckenstein, MD Greg Polites, MD Deborah Rubin, MD, AGAF 12:45pm Q-n- A and wrap up

3 Today s Objectives Present Brief guidelines and suggestions on writing reference (referee) letters for NIH fellowship and mentored career development programs Examples of good and bad referee letters Tips about what to include in Promotion letters Medical student application letters Faculty letters of support Panel discussion, audience Q&A

4 Before writing the reference letter, know the candidate and the criteria. Be specific.

5 If you are writing your own reference letter(s), start now and continue to refine instead of waiting for a deadline.

6 NIH Mentored Career Development Awards Fellowship Awards

7 NIH Resources NIH Reference Letters website:

8 General Guidelines Instructions to provide to referees (use as template) Mentored Career Development Awards Potential to become an independent research scientist Evidence of originality Adequacy of scientific background Quality of research endeavors or publications to date, if any Commitment to health-oriented research Need for further research experience and training Any additional related comments that the referee may wish to provide

9 General Guidelines Instructions to provide to referees (use as template) Fellowship Awards Research ability and potential to become an independent researcher Adequacy of scientific and technical background Written and verbal communication abilities including ability to organize scientific data Quality of research endeavors or publications to date, if applicable Perseverance in pursuing goals Evidence of originality Need for further research experience and training Familiarity with research literature

10 Gender Bias

11 Avoid Gender Bias Describe research and publications for men and women Include detail about the candidate s personal accomplishments Emphasize accomplishments, not effort Keep it professional; avoid stereotypes Avoid negative or irrelevant comments such as challenging personality or I have confidence that she will become better than average Source: Avoiding gender bias in reference writing:

12 Avoid Gender Bias Adjectives to avoid Caring, compassionate, hard-working, conscientious, dependable, diligent, tactful, interpersonal, warm, helpful, attractive Adjectives to include Successful, excellent, accomplished, outstanding, skilled, knowledgeable, insightful, resourceful, confident, ambitious, independent, intellectual Source: Avoiding gender bias in reference writing:

13 Avoid Gender Bias Avoid doubt-raisers which are more common in letters recommending women Falls into four categories: Negativity (directly saying something bad) Faint praise (indirect criticism of someone or something by giving a slight compliment) Hedges (cautious or vague language) Irrelevant information (going off in a direction unrelated to job description) Examples: The candidate has a somewhat challenging personality and She might be a good leader in the future. Source: Rice University at

14 Example 1: Good or Bad? To whom it may concern: It is my pleasure to serve as a reference for Dr. X on her K01 application. I support Dr. X s proposal to use nerons derived from ipsc and to define mechanisms by which genetic variability in the MAPT gene contributes to Taupoathies. Dr. X is extremely hardworking and dependable. Despite balancing her research with raising a young family she is always one of the first people in the lab and last to leave. One of my lab s current goals is to further develop methods to precisely control the generation of different neuronal subtypes. I have gained the expertise in analyzing differentiated neurons of different subtypes over the course of my career, and will lend this expertise in culturing Dr. X s proposed experiements. Dr. X is a strong candidate and I urge you to consider her for this position. Enthusiastically yours,

15 Example 1: Good or Bad? To whom it may concern: (OK according to guidelines) It is my pleasure to serve as a reference for Dr. X on her K01 application. I support Dr. X s proposal to use nerons (spelling) derived from ipsc and to define mechanisms by which genetic variability in the MAPT gene contributes to Taupoathies. Dr. X is extremely hardworking (associates with effort, but not ability) and dependable. (punctuation; vague) Despite balancing her research with raising a young family she is always one of the first people in the lab and last to leave. (punctuation; too much focus on personal life and not on professional ability note that reference letters for women are seven times more likely to mention personal life 1 ) One of my lab s current goals is to further develop methods to precisely control the generation of different neuronal subtypes. ( my lab indicates more detail about the referee than the applicant) I have gained the expertise in analyzing differentiated neurons of different subtypes over the course of my career, and will lend this expertise in culturing Dr. X s proposed experiements. (misspelling, punctuation, lack of detail that doesn t indicate strong knowledge of candidate s research; more about referee than candidate) Dr. X is a strong candidate and I urge you to consider her for this position. Enthusiastically yours, (unprofessional) Letter is too short on average, 1 Avoiding reference gender bias in reference letters writing: for men are 16% longer than letters for women 1

16 Example 2: Good or Bad? To whom it may concern: It is my pleasure to write a letter documenting my enthusiastic commitment to serve as primary mentor for Dr. [applicant]. I have known Dr. [applicant] for five years and worked closely with her for the past two years. I have served as a mentor for her for the past eighteen months and met with her frequently to discuss her research, career development, training and K23 proposal. (professional, specific, no gender bias) We appreciate the reviewers thoughtful comments regarding the original K23 application. Dr. [applicant] has carefully addressed each concern and has incorporated these improvements into this resubmission. I believe Dr. [applicant] is an outstanding candidate for a K23 award. Dr. [applicant] is extremely smart, hard working, attentive to detail and committed to a career in academic medicine. She has distinguished herself throughout her scholarly training with numerous honors and awards including becoming elected to the Phi Eta Sigma honor society, graduating with distinction from the University of [name], receiving the [name of state] State Medical Society Foundation Scholarship, the NIH loan repayment program, and the IDSA/NFID Pfizer Fellowship in Clinical Diseases Award. (specific)

17 Example 2: Good or Bad? Because of her outstanding potential, her research training has been supported by the [name of grant] training grant, the Washington University Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences (ICTS) KL2 program and an ICTS pilot and feasibility award to study [area of research]. (specific) Dr. [applicant] has aggressively pursued additional clinical research training and obtained a Master s of Science in Clinical Investigation from the Washington University Clinical Research Training Center during her fellowship. This degree requires over 30 hours of graduate coursework along with mentored research experiences. She excelled in her coursework and developed a robust skill set in study design, subject recruitment and retention, molecular microbiologic methods, and epidemiologic data analysis by performing a series of studies of [area of research]. In these studies, she enrolled over 1300 patients from community-based practices to determine [insert language here]. She also evaluated [insert language here]. She led two randomized trials evaluating [insert language here]. She has developed an outstanding infrastructure for the next level of her research outlined in this K23 proposal. (specific; indicates ability to continue toward goal of independent investigator)

18 Other General Tips Be specific link details in the letter to the candidate s research strategy and other training details (course work, meetings) toward the candidate s goal to be an independent investigator Highlight whether the candidate has a faculty position and will get support whether or not they get an award this shows department and institutional commitment Be specific about support provided (office, computer, assistant?) Avoid being too effusive and verbose respect the reviewer s time and consider that the

19 Other General Tips It should be clear that the referee knows the applicant by Presenting the applicant s unique potential and Describing their commitment to research and how a particular career development or fellowship award will keep them on their career path There is a growing importance of the candidate s desire to help and mentor others (at any level - academic or team science approach) If an application asks for 3-5 Letters of Reference, how many are they really looking for? It s quality and not quantity that matters Better to have three letters that demonstrate that they know the candidate and their potential It s important to be strategic about who you ask to demonstrate cross disciplinary research *Source: National Science Foundation:

20 Other General Tips Conveying Institutional Support (you as author!) The Kiss of Death Never, ever say that institutional support is contingent on receiving the award The letter should promise what you need to succeed (typically 75% protect time for research and career development activities be specific in describing these) Success Looks Like your becoming an independent investigator Open strong: I wish to provide my strongest support for *Source: Dr. Nancy J. Brown, Vanderbilt, at

21 Comments from Summary Statements Strengths Personal, Genuine Touch: Mentors and collaborators uniformly submitted strong letters of support for the candidate, most with comments on the individual characteristics of the candidate implying they know him well. Beautifully written and very extensive letter is provided by the mentor outlining in detail (and in many pages) the plan to develop the applicant into an independent clinicianscientist. Strong letters of support are provided by Dr. X s primary mentor and his advisors. They all speak to his past accomplishments and future promise as a clinician scientist in the area of leukemia. In particular, Dr. X notes that of more than 100 trainees he has worked with, Dr. X is the single best clinical and translational fellow that I have been associated with

22 Comments from Summary Statements Strengths Strong Institutional Support/Clearly Stated Protected Time: The environment for the propose training and research plans is outstanding. A letter from Dr. X, Chair of the of Medicine, confirms a strong institutional commitment including 75% protected time, appropriate office and laboratory space, full cancer center membership and privileges and CRA support of his clinical trials. All other supplies/laboratory space/travel funds have been provided to Dr. X per the letter from Dr. X or from Dr. X. The environment will support the applicant s successful proposed studies. In the institutional support letter, Dr.

23 Comments from Summary Statements Strengths: Clear with Specific Details: In their letters of support, they have each outlined detailed plans by which their contributions will be made and this clarity greatly enhances ability to appreciate the value of the applicant s proposed training strategy. In his letter to the committee, the mentor(s) strongly address the candidate s potential and his/her strengths and areas needing improvement. Transition (K99): Dr. X completely supports the candidate s transition to independence and states in her letter that she will help guide him during his search for a faculty position and ensure that his future aims do not compete with hers.

24 Comments from Summary Statements Strengths: Likelihood for Success: Letters all mention high likelihood of success for this candidate. Very strong letters of reference from senior faculty at multiple institutions. She has an outstanding scientific and mentoring record and her letter of support indicates a clear commitment to the candidate. Letters of support are outstanding, describing a highly intelligent, motivated, and productive young scientist with great potential for an independent research career.

25 Promotion

26 Promotion Letters Introductory paragraph Candidate s full name and degree; proposed academic rank and other promotion details General information How long have you known candidate? In what capacities have you known candidate? Shared clinical specialty? Fellow investigator? Trainee/mentee? Shared committee assignments?

27 Promotion Letters Professional characteristics (clinical, research and administrative accomplishments) What is area and extent of clinical practice? Research? Does candidate s area of practice inform research targets; does area of research complement and enhance clinical practice? What are key research accomplishments (R01, serves on multiple NIH study sections)? Key clinical accomplishments? Has the candidate published in high-quality journals? Served on editorial boards? Been invited to speak at national and international meetings? Received prestigious awards in their field?

28 Promotion Letters Personal characteristics Leadership experience and potential? Teaching responsibilities? Initiative (self-starter)? Community service? Recognition and honors? Membership and activities in professional societies? Character avoid gender bias

29 Q & A Panel Discussion Melvin Blanchard, MD Gregory Polites, MD Deborah Rubin, MD Jaquelyn Fleckenstein, MD Susan Dutcher, PhD

30 Thank You! Please take a few minutes to fill out your workshop evaluation. WUSM Office of Training Grants WUSM Office of Faculty Affairs of Medicine - Office of Faculty Development