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Reference Guide

Thank you for agreeing to serve as a reference for a Fellow nomination.

As references are a very important part of the nomination, we have created this guide to assist you.

Please remember that the nominee should not participate in the nomination process, nor be aware that they have been nominated. Please do not contact the nominee directly regarding their nomination.

NEW Deadline: References must be submitted by 25 May 25 June.

Reference Information

All reference information is submitted online through BEAM. Any documents must be uploaded as PDF files. The following is needed for a reference:

  1. A short questionnaire about the nominee.
     
  2. A brief statement (1,500 characters or less) describing your specific knowledge of the nominee's contributions, highlighting why they should become a Fellow. This statement should emphasize the impact of the nominee’s work, and support their nomination category(ies). Please do not simply repeat information already provided in the narrative or CV/resume. This is an opportunity to provide new information, add personal perspective and highlight what makes the nominee unique.
     
  3. An optional one (1) page letter of support may be uploaded (must be a PDF).
Information Available to References

When you access the reference submission site you will see the following information:

  1. Nominee’s name
     
  2. Proposed citation
     
  3. A link to the nominator’s one (1) page narrative/statement of support that outlines why this nominee should be elected Fellow.
     
  4. A link to the nominee’s CV/Resume
     
  5. The primary nomination category that best defines the nominee’s contributions. Please keep this category in mind when writing your reference.
     
  6. Optional secondary category (Note – this option was added in  2021 so it may be blank).
Reference Do's and Don'ts

The Fellow nomination process is competitive and the quality of a reference matters!

Don’t:

  1. Include the nominee in the process!
     
  2. Forget to check for spelling errors, typos and grammatical errors.
     
  3. Repeat/duplicate the narrative.
     
  4. Comment on achievements/accomplishments that you are not familiar with.
     
  5. Assume that the reviewer knows the nominee well.
     
  6. Use generalizations.
     
  7. Focus on accomplishments/work that are outside of the nomination category(ies).
     
  8. Just say your nominee is outstanding – prove it!
Do:
  1. Review the materials submitted by the nominator before starting your reference.
     
  2. Focus on the impact of the nominee’s work or activity, and provide a unique interpretation of its value/impact.
     
  3. Give specific examples that support the nominee, with special emphasis on the nomination category(ies).
     
  4. Proofread your material for typos and mistakes.
     
  5. Include qualitative and quantitative facts, statistics, metrics, etc.
     
  6. Provide a personal perspective, and highlight what makes the nominee unique.
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