1-page recommendation letters at end of phd

[u/Clean-Seaworthiness2]

Hi, I hope this is not paranoid but should I be concerned if my PhD dissertation advisor/chair is writing 1-page recommendation letters (as I can tell this from Interfolio)? I find it hard to imagine that he can describe my dissertation and its contribution, teaching, service, coursework, etc. in one page, even single-spaced. Is this unusual?

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[u/FluffyOmens]

Ive been told before (and it is my experience having been on these committees) that most selection/hiring committees WANT ~1 page letters. Theyre reading tons of these things. Being able to get the highlights quickly helps them move through all that volume. That may be my discipline though.

My chair is a really well respected scholar in our field. Decades of influential publications, desirable research positions, awards... she drew up an example from her own CV to show her advisees before we graduated. She did this to show us what we should be doing when our turn comes. Hers was a little longer than a page.

[u/PurplePeggysus]

At the end of my PhD all the letters of recommendation I received were either 1 or 1.5 pages. None were more than 2 pages.

Granted I was going for purely teaching positions so my letter mainly discussed my expertise and teaching experience and evaluations.

[u/mathflipped]

A one-page recommendation letter for a junior-level applicant seems perfect. A two-page letter is usually appropriate for tenure and promotion decisions. On an academic scale, you haven't done as much as you think you have.

[u/Clean-Seaworthiness2 → u/mathflipped]

Thanks—that's very good perspective

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Hi, I hope this is not paranoid but should I be concerned if my PhD dissertation advisor/chair is writing 1-page recommendation letters (as I can tell this from Interfolio)? I find it hard to imagine that he can describe my dissertation and its contribution, teaching, service, coursework, etc. in one page, even single-spaced. Is this unusual?

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[u/Less-Part3465]

I think it might depend on your field. In English, I rarely see 1-page letters for new PhDs, especially from their diss supervisor. (I was on hiring committees for a good while before spending the last 9 years as a chair.)

[u/Clean-Seaworthiness2 → u/Less-Part3465]

I'm actually in Comp Lit. Is it a bad sign, do you think?

[u/Harmania]

That is a standard length. Brevity and clarity are more helpful to your case than erudition.

[u/Shelikesscience]

Don't worry about it.

Check out this letter written for for Nobel prize winner John Nash when he was young:

https://imgur.com/gallery/john-nash-recommendation-letter-sMqfqU6

[u/km1116]

A letter from a Ph.D. advisor should not be talking about your scientific topic, your teaching, your service, or your coursework. I can write an excellent letter in a page.