Timeline for What is the point of a non-confidential reference letter?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
9 events
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| Sep 6, 2016 at 12:28 | comment | added | Nate Eldredge | @YemonChoi: Thanks, I misunderstood previous comments. Removed mine. In that case, I'm with JessicaB in that I don't see how the law is relevant here. Even in the US, when we send confidential references, we don't expect to be able to legally enforce confidentiality; we rely on the ethics and professionalism of the recipient. So wouldn't this be the same in the UK? | |
| Sep 6, 2016 at 2:56 | comment | added | Yemon Choi | @NateEldredge IANAL but if your "DPA" stands for the UK's Data Protection Act then I am not sure your most recent comment is phrased correctly: e.g. reading.ac.uk/internal/imps/DataProtection/… (Although the details seem to bear out the general thrust of your comment) | |
| Sep 5, 2016 at 15:21 | comment | added | Jessica B | I don't see it as a problem that the receiver of a reference can release its contents, because they are the ones interested in knowing that they have not been released. If they want the reference to stay confidential, they can do so. | |
| Sep 5, 2016 at 14:40 | comment | added | MJeffryes | @Deleuze You might be right about that. But even if it is unlawful, it could make its way back by the grapevine regardless. | |
| Sep 5, 2016 at 14:30 | comment | added | Deleuze | @MJeffryes if I'm not mistaken the thing stopping them telling the referee that a request to see the reference has been made would be... the Data Protection Act. | |
| Sep 5, 2016 at 14:27 | comment | added | MJeffryes | @NateEldredge No, it is not possible to waive your rights under data protection act. | |
| Sep 5, 2016 at 14:26 | comment | added | MJeffryes | The thing about using the DPA to see your references is that there is nothing stopping the institution you are making the request against from telling the author of the reference that you've done it. I suspect anyone pulling this trick would find it hard to get anyone to write a reference for them in the future. | |
| Sep 5, 2016 at 14:04 | comment | added | Nate Eldredge | Well, the US has a similar disclosure law for student records, but we work around it. When a student first applies to an institution (before letters are submitted), they are given the option to waive their legal right to see their letters. Then the reference writer is told (usually by the institution) whether or not the student has chosen the waiver. If the student didn't choose the waiver, the writer can decline to submit a letter at all. So in practice, letters are confidential after all. Is this not possible under UK law? | |
| Sep 5, 2016 at 13:36 | history | answered | Deleuze | CC BY-SA 3.0 |