« Using LBS to change fitness behavior and attitudes | Main | Creative Commons »
February 22, 2006
Matching student talent with industry needs -- fun
Helping tech companies find the right talent is one rewarding aspects of working at Stanford. Recently, one of my former graduate students was offered a great job at Adobe. I played a small part in making the match, since I knew the hiring manager at Adobe and I could give a very specific and strong endorsement.
In this case, the student was a very good match for the job, so it was easy to serve as a reference. However, in some cases it's not so easy.
I decline to act as a reference if a former student is not someone I'd hire myself, for whatever reason. Declining, of course, is awkward. But I believe it's the right thing to do. I have to be able to stand behind people I refer; otherwise, my credibility gets ruined (and that's an academic's stock in trade: credibility). The other option would be to give a mediocre endorsement, which doesn't help the student.
Those of you in academics understand all this, of course. A significant part of our job is helping students find success after they complete school. Each of us has to figure out -- mostly on our own -- how to do this well. Maybe we should have formal training . . .
Posted by BJ Fogg at February 22, 2006 04:44 PM