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[stoppedclock]

Here is a situation that I could use some input on.  I’m winding up my Humanities Ph.D at - let’s call it (because it certainly thinks of itself as) - World’s Best University.  Not being such a huge fan of WBU, I wrangled a visiting research fellowship at a global-quality provincial university this year.  A job came up at GQPU at the same time as I’d arranged to give a paper on my post-doctoral research project, which then became something of a job talk, with members of the eventual SC present.  With this added emphasis on what was originally to be a seminar paper, I put the thesis research on hold and delved into the secondary work on the proposed post-doc research, and structured the paper to the teaching requirements of the department.  I’m told that the effort was well received and that I’d impressed everyone present – including some not always so sympathetic faculty.

I’ve subsequently been informed that, on the strength of that paper, the department at GQPU were prepared to run with my subsequent job application at least as far as the interview stage.  After the application went in, the SC informally sounded out my WBU supervisor, who is said to have responded that my presentation was superficial and that I didn’t really know anything about the topic.  He’s not entirely wrong, as this is an area I’m moving into, not the area I’ve been working in for the past three years.  He had read the paper in advance, and as it moves away from my current interests, it is even further removed from his approach to the discipline.  His criticism was not so much a hatchet job as damning with faint praise, and as a result the application at GQPU went nowhere.

My question is if my supervisor’s references are doing more harm than good, would it be a good idea to use other referees in my future applications?  Put another way: Will an application in the Humanities without a reference form the Ph.D supervisor raise red flags?  I have other prestigious and much more helpful referees lined up, but I have always shied away from excluding my supervisor’s letters.  Addressing this problem with my supervisor is out of the question – I have to take or leave the references as they are.  Suggestions?

[expatinuk]

I can't help you here.... I got too confused reading the original post.

[harsh_critic]

Sounds like your WBU supervisor is not being very supportive of you. However, being so short out of the PhD program, it might look strange not to have your PhD supervisor as one of your references.

It may be worthwhile to sit down with the WBU supervisor and discuss your current research focus so that the supervisor can better represent you. It may be that since the subject of your job talk was outside of supervisor's expertise that supervisor really couldn't comment intelligently on it.

[nippers]

Is there any way in which you can have another faculty member, or someone else you trust, take a look at your advisor's letter?  Are you using a dossier service of some kind that would allow that kind of check to take place without your advisor's knowledge?

Will an application in the Humanities without a reference form the Ph.D supervisor raise red flags?

I haven't served on a search committee, but my gut instinct is to say that the absence of a letter from your supervisor will raise red flags, but that those flags wouldn't disqualify you from the interview stage -- especially if, as you suggest, you can fill your dossier with sparkling letters from other faculty members.

As you've already seen, having this letter in your dossier can prevent you from even reaching the interview stage.  If talking with the advisor about this really isn't an option, then I'd suggest not including the letter in your apps, and trying to think about how you'll put a positive spin on this situation in an interview.

I do think that it would be wise to talk to your advisor at some point, since the committee may try to contact hu before or after an interview.

[seniorscholar]

In my humanities department, yes, an application without a supporting reference from the doctoral supervisor would raise large questions, though we probably have at least one tenured faculty member who has a Ph.D. (or D.Phil., as the case may be) from WBU and if everything else about your file looked really good, and you had no letter or even a weak letter from your supervisor, one or two of those people might make inquiries from friends to see if colleagues in the supervisor's department will reveal personality quirks or etc. that might explain the letter (or lack thereof). Otherwise, we look for the supervisor's reference until you have significant publications; i.e. a couple of essays in top-notch journals, or a book under contract.

[stoppedclock]

Thanks to the forumites who responded.  It’s a tricky situation, and it’s good to know how it might play out.  The really frustrating part of it all is that he’s actually a really good mentor, and very encouraging – it’s just that he is less than inspiring as a patron, in a market where I really need someone to lie boldly about my brilliance and employability.  Alas.

Thanks harshcritic for the suggestion of a strategy of educating the man so that he can fully appreciate what I’m up to.  Nippers, my gut agrees with yours, which is a good outcome for the post.  And thanks seniorscholar for an analysis from the SC perspective.  I think I might try future applications both ways: some with supervisor’s letters and some without, and see if it makes any difference.  There are no personality quirks to be found on either his part or mine, so I can’t anticipate understanding based on any insider knowledge.

Has anyone been through this themselves?

[katherineparr]

I had a somewhat similar situation while job hunting. The second person on my committee never wrote a letter at all. Repeated requests, both from me and from my advisor, elicited nothing.

The problem with all this was that this person represented a very important subfield which was a part of several good jobs to which I applied that year. So I think it's possible that I was not a viable candidate for those jobs because this person didn't recommend my work in that area.

But you never know. Perhaps I was never a good candidate for those jobs. I ended up with 2 offers and more nibbles that I turned away because I took a job. And in future, I'm pleased to know that this person's unprofessional failure to support a dissertation student won't be my problem anymore.

I hope your situation works out well for you. It sounds as though people who work with you and know your work like and respect you, and if that's the case, I think you have good options.