New Graduates and Letters of Recommendation

I finished my degree in April 2009 and it was not the most fortunate time to enter the workforce. With little experience, I needed all the help I could get.

I thought with giving a list of references to potential employers at my interviews, I'd be a shoe-in - all my past references thought very highly of me and would give glowing reviews.

The downside to this is that it usually can be a pain for HR to track down references (a lot of my past supervisors weren't stuck to their desks 24/7).

Providing a Letter of Recommendation, along with their contact information, let my potential employers know how highly people thought of me up front. It also gives them something to talk to my references about if they need more details.

I'd say HR is more favorable to applicants that are going to make their job easier.