This reference sheet template separates a reference's current title from their relationship to you, with a preparation view for permissions and a clean document preview. Use the number of references and submission format the employer actually requests.
Prepare the list for the actual request
In this original fictional example, an employer asks for two references in a separate application document. The required file format and submission route remain to confirm. Two people have agreed to act as references in the teaching record; their real names and contact details are not supplied.
The UC Davis Career Center's references guidance recommends asking permission before using someone's name, confirming current contact information, and preparing them with relevant application materials. Its reference fields distinguish the relationship from current title and employer. Follow your employer's instructions for the requested count and timing.
Before formatting the list, ask each person whether they are willing and available to serve as a reference for this application. Confirm how their name, current position, organization, phone, and email should appear. A familiar contact in your phone is still worth checking before you send the employer their details.
Keep preparation notes separate from the employer copy
| Teaching record | Preparation status | What belongs in the preview |
|---|---|---|
| R1: former volunteer coordinator | Permission supplied in this fictional record; supervised the applicant's archive cataloguing activity. | Reference entry with accurate relationship and current title. Name, organization, and contact details remain to confirm. |
| R2: former course project adviser | Permission supplied in this fictional record. | Reference entry with project-adviser relationship and current Instructor title. Name, organization, and contact details remain to confirm. |
| R3: possible current colleague | Permission not asked. | Excluded. Keep this possible contact in private preparation notes. |
Choose Preparation notes to see all three records and the missing details. Then choose Employer-copy preview. Only R1 and R2 appear there, with visible placeholders for the information still needed. The permission notes and R3 stay out of that preview.
Two entries with supplied permission do not make this sample ready to submit. The contact fields and the requested route still need confirmation. The preview is useful for checking the structure while those questions remain open.
Give each entry a clear relationship and current position
The fictional entries use this structure:
| Field | R1 | R2 |
|---|---|---|
| Name | NAME TO CONFIRM | NAME TO CONFIRM |
| Relationship to applicant | Former volunteer supervisor for archive cataloguing activity | Former course project adviser |
| Current title | Museum Programs Coordinator | Instructor |
| Current organization | ORGANIZATION TO CONFIRM | ORGANIZATION TO CONFIRM |
| Phone | CONTACT TO CONFIRM | CONTACT TO CONFIRM |
| CONTACT TO CONFIRM | CONTACT TO CONFIRM |
Select R1 relationship in the example. Compare the misleading label “Current supervisor” with “Former volunteer supervisor.” The current title, Museum Programs Coordinator, stays unchanged in both views. Correcting the relationship does not require replacing a person's present title with the role they held when they supervised you.
Use equally specific wording for your own list. “Former project supervisor” explains a different connection from “Course adviser.” Confirm the description with the person if you are unsure. Do not add a statement about what they will say on your behalf; the reference speaks for themselves.
Prepare the person for the application
After they agree, share the relevant role description and your current application materials through the route you have arranged with them. Explain which work you did together so they can place the request in context. Keep any private preparation discussion outside the employer's reference document.
This sheet gives the employer accurate people to contact. A recommendation letter is a different requested artifact, and the reference list does not write or sign one for them. If the employer asks for a letter or uses its own reference form, follow that route.
For a fictional or sanitized layout check, an HTML copy in your NOS workspace can make the relationship and current-title fields easy to compare. Clarify the static relationship label if it is misleading, then carry that correction into the actual requested document. Keep real contact information and permission records in your approved private application handling.
Copy a prompt for your reference sheet
Create one complete HTML reference-sheet preparation page.
Employer's actual requested number, fields and submission route: [PASTE]
Applicant details needed on the requested document: [PASTE]
People who agreed, with current availability confirmed: [PASTE]
For each: name, relationship, current title, current organization,
confirmed phone and email: [PASTE]
Missing details and private preparation questions: [PASTE]
Keep permission/preparation notes separate from the employer copy.
Include only people who agreed in the preview. Do not invent names,
contacts, positions, relationships, permission, availability or
endorsements. Missing details must remain visible TO CONFIRM.
Use the actual requested count and format; HTML is a reading copy,
not proof that the employer accepts a web link.
Include this original fictional example:
Employer requests two references in a separate application document.
Required format and route TO CONFIRM. No real names or contact data.
R1 permission supplied in teaching record. Relationship: former
direct volunteer supervisor for an archive cataloguing activity.
Current title Museum Programs Coordinator. Name/current organization,
phone/email TO CONFIRM.
R2 permission supplied. Relationship: former course project adviser.
Current title Instructor. Name/current organization, phone/email
TO CONFIRM. No claimed recommendation content from either person.
R3 possible current colleague, permission not asked. Preparation
view only; exclude from employer-copy preview. Do not decide that
this person is suitable or send them a request.
Preparation notes shows R1/R2/R3, permission state and missing facts.
Employer-copy preview shows only R1/R2, their contact placeholders
and accurate role/relationship fields; exclude private notes.
State incomplete contacts/route prevent treating the sample as ready.
R1 relationship comparison: misleading Current supervisor versus
correct Former volunteer supervisor. Current title Museum Programs
Coordinator stays unchanged. Never infer an endorsement or consent
from the wording edit.
Add a separate blank scaffold and temporary preparation notes.
Preserve typing across views; confirm reset. No real contact
collection, email/phone links, consent requests, verification,
submission, public directory or fake PDF/DOCX export. Notes last
only in this open page. At least 16px text, labeled native controls,
visible focus, stacked reference records at 360px without overflow.
Inline CSS/JavaScript only; no external assets, network or storage.
Return full HTML. The actual employer-required document remains
the submission artifact.
Inspect the preview before using your own details. R3 should be absent, both remaining references should retain their contact gaps, and R1's current job title should not change when you correct the relationship label.
Check the requested document before sending it
Confirm permission and current details with the people you will list, then finish the document in the employer's required format. Reopen that file or form to check that each relationship, title, and contact field survived the transfer.
Tell your references which application to expect through your agreed communication route. Send the employer the requested document only when its details and delivery method are confirmed.