Getting a Great Reference from a Top Professor

As a recent college graduate living in the Boston area, I had the opportunity to take a Computer Science class at Harvard University. The professor held a PhD from Oxford University and was the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at one of the Boston area’s hot technology companies. This long-time member of the Harvard Adjunct Faculty had made a reputation for himself and his class by regularly hiring the top students from the classes he taught at Harvard. The class I took had at least five hundred other students with me in the large auditorium. Graduate Assistants provided weekly section meetings and graded all the work, except for a final project which was optional but required to earn a top grade in the class. I chose to do a final project and completed the class with an A minus. Two years later, I managed to get a reference from this popular professor to secure what was then my dream job.

My then dream job required more technical prowess than had ever been required of me in the workplace, but I felt confident based upon what I had learned at Harvard. As I progressed through the interview process, everything was clicking. But eventually, my hiring manager needed to address the question of my technical prowess and after he and I explored some options, I came up with the idea of my professor at Harvard speaking with him for five minutes about what I had done in his class to earn the A minus. That satisfied my future boss, so I turned my attention to lining up my professor as a reference. Given that this professor taught at least one thousand students each year and had seen scores of project presentations since he had seen mine, I was concerned he did not even remember me. Before you continue reading, ask yourself how you would go about lining up this professor as a reference.

I called my professor’s office and asked for his admin. When I reached her, I explained I was a former student and that I was hoping to speak with the professor on the telephone and that I needed just two minutes of his time. She told me she would try to find a free moment when he could speak with me and to call her at the same time in two days to give her enough time to ask for me. Five days later I was on the phone explaining my need for a reference. I gave a quick summary of my final project but he told me he was sorry to say that he did not remember my project since he has so many students each semester. So this is what I asked him.

“Can you spend just five minute on the telephone with my hiring manager to answer his questions about what an A minus in your class means?”

“That I can do,” he replied. “Have him schedule it with my admin. And good luck to you.” The call was over. When I relayed the kind of reference my professor had agreed to provide to the hiring manager, he was very happy with the plan. Two weeks later, I had a written offer for my dream job in hand.

To gain a reference from a famous professor like I did, you will need to have done well in the class. My A minus was certainly the bare minimum. My Harvard transcript for the single class took care of the rest. As long as you are confident enough to ask for just two minutes, most famous professors will provide that to a former student and likewise be willing to provide another five to your hiring manager. So good luck to you.