Whether you’ve set out to write your first résumé or you’re updating your existing one for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that has come your way, I’m sure you agree that writing a résumé is no walk in a park. It’s more like an obstacle course in the jungle.
From writing your career summary to listing your most relevant experience in your employment history (in reverse chronological order, of course), it’s just one difficult section after the next, and you finally feel relief when you reach the references section. Trouble is: it’s just as tricky as its predecessors.
But not to worry! In this complete guide, we’ll walk you through the dos and don’ts of including references within your résumé, when you should list them separately, and whether employers even contact references. Plus, you’ll find a couple of examples for inspiration.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What are résumé references?
Résumé references are people you trust to vouch for your professional credibility, qualifications and work ethic.
Recruiters and hiring managers reach out to these contacts, typically during the final stages of the hiring process, to verify (among other things) employment dates, job duties and skills, get insights into your work performance and character, and identify your cultural fit and compatibility with the company. They then use this information to make an informed hiring decision.
Do employers even contact references?
Yes, they do — for the most part. In a CareerBuilder survey of nearly 3,000 hiring managers, 80% said they contact references when evaluating potential employees — and 16% said they do so before even inviting candidates for an interview.
Some employers will call all the references you’ve listed on your résumé, while others will only contact the ones most relevant to the job you’ve applied for. Meanwhile, they may ask you for additional references, but not many hiring managers will bother wasting their time on something you should’ve perfected in the first place.
Should you list references on your résumé?
Whether or not references should even be included in a résumé has been the subject of much debate.
For the most part, however, recruiters and résumé experts warn against it, citing its outdatedness and its tendency to waste valuable résumé space as the main reasons. Instead, they recommend listing references in a separate document and supplying this to hiring managers only when requested to do so.
That said, there are a few scenarios where it’s perfectly acceptable to list references directly on your résumé, the most principal of which is when the job description not only requests them as part of your application but also explicitly requires their inclusion in your résumé.
It’s also a good idea to list references on your résumé if you’re applying for entry-level positions or changing industries. Likewise, if you work in an industry where it’s customary to include case studies or testimonials in your résumé, it may be appropriate to list the relevant person’s name and contact information.
Who should you use as references?
When listing references on your résumé, it’s crucial that you choose people who can speak to your skills, qualifications and character.
References generally fall under two main categories:
- Academic references such as teachers, professors or lecturers, academic advisors, research supervisors, deans, and project mentors — which are ideal for current students, recent graduates or those with significant academic involvement.
- Professional references like managers or supervisors, colleagues or peers, mentors, team members, and clients — which are more suitable for experienced professionals as well as jobseekers with relevant work experience.
In all cases, try to aim for variety. This means avoiding listing people all from the same company and instead choosing references that can highlight various aspects of your performance, qualifications and abilities in different roles.
WARNING
Don’t use family members or close friends as references (unless you actually worked with them), as their opinions will very likely be biased. Likewise, avoid references who don’t know you well enough, who had a poor experience with you, or that may be controversial (like counselors and clergy).
Get their permission first
Before listing referees’ names and contact information on your résumé, make sure to first ask them for their permission, and whether they’re comfortable and willing to act as referees. The last thing you want is for a supposed referee to be caught off guard when a recruiter reaches out to them or, indeed, list someone who doesn’t want to be listed.
It’s a good idea to give potential references plenty of time to consider your request, but do make sure to note the application deadline.
Verify their details
Once you’ve obtained permission from your contacts to use them as references, it’s crucial to verify their job titles and contact information.
This is especially important if a long time has passed since you last worked together, as a lot may have changed since then: they may have moved to a different company or position, or changed their phone number or email address.
Even if you recently worked together, verifying their details ensures that employers have the correct information to contact references without any hiccups.
Prepare referees
Once someone agrees to be a reference, make sure to share the latest version of your résumé, cover letter and any other important documents (and even the job description) with them.
Indeed, doing so helps them refresh their memory of your work history, accomplishments and qualifications, which can then help them provide more relevant, tailored and detailed recommendations to hiring managers.
It's also a good idea to let references know the specific skills, experiences and achievements you want to highlight.
How many references should you list?
Generally speaking, providing three references is a good rule of thumb and is enough to give hiring managers a rounded impression of you — though you can list up to as many as five. If, however, you’re applying for a senior position, you should have a slightly longer list of references, about five to seven referees.
The hiring manager might not contact all your references, but it’s still a good idea to provide them with a number of different options to give them more choice.
PRO TIP
Prepare a master list of 10 or more references, organized into categories (such as “Professional References” and “Academic References”). This will be helpful in handpicking appropriate references for each job you apply to.
How to format the references section
Read to put your résumé’s references section together? Here are some pointers to keep in mind:
1. Include relevant information
For each referee, make sure to add the following information:
- Their full name (including any honorifics or postnominals)
- Their professional title
- The name of the company/organization they work for
- The company’s address
- Their direct phone number(s)
- Their email address
- A short description of your working relationship
2. Organize entries neatly
The neater, tidier and more organized your references section is (and your entire résumé, that is), the better.
Typically, reference entries start with the referee’s name, followed by their title and company name, their contact information, and finally their relationship to you. For example:
Reference Name
Job Title at Company Name
Address
Phone Number
Email Address
Reference Description
If you’re short on space, however, consider listing referees’ names, job titles and companies together on one line, and everything else on a second line — like so:
Reference Name — Job Title at Company Name
Address | Phone Number | Email Address | Reference Description
In all cases, the name of the referee should stand out from everything else, and this is generally achieved by setting it in bold or using a slightly larger font size.
3. Order references strategically
When adding references to your résumé, it’s a good idea to arrange them in order of relevancy, where the first reference is the most relevant to the job you’re applying for. Likewise, if one of your references is a prominent industry leader, then you should consider listing them first.
Alternatively, you can list references chronologically — that is: starting your list with the people you’ve worked with most recently at the top and working your way backwards from there.
4. Be consistent
Consistency is key to any successful résumé. Indeed, it enhances its overall readability, demonstrates your attention to detail (a highly valuable skill that employers look for) and promotes credibility and trust.
For the references section specifically, being consistent means using the same information and formatting across all entries. For example, if you omit one referee’s address, consider omitting it for the other referees too.
5. Consider using a table for space efficiency
While tables are generally discouraged from being used in résumés (largely because applicant tracking systems often have a hard time “reading” them), you can use one if space is limited — provided that you do so carefully.
The trick here is to dedicate one column (no more than 3–4) for each reference, and to keep references’ details in a single table cell, like so:
Jane Nicholson CEO at Company ABC
1 Job Avenue +(1) 123 456-7890 |
Phillip Michaels Head of Marketing at XYZ Inc
87 Career Street +(1) 123 456-7890 |
Andrew Smith Graphic Designer at Studio 123
101 Jobville +(1) 123 456-7890 |
Where to put the references section
The references section is always that last section of a résumé.
If you don’t have enough space for a dedicated section on your résumé (and provided the job description doesn’t require one), consider listing references on a separate page at the end of your résumé or as a separate attachment.
Whatever you do, though, don’t include the phrase “References available upon request”. It only takes up valuable résumé real estate, while it’s unnecessary — employers expect you to have references to supply at some point.
Examples of references
Want to see what listing references on a résumé looks like? Here are a couple of examples for inspiration.
References section in a résumé
Here’s a great example of a well-written references section, as illustrated on one of our very own résumé templates:
Frequently asked questions
Still got questions about résumé references? Check out these FAQs:
Q: What if I don’t have professional or academic references?
If you don’t have any suitable professional or academic references, you may be able to use personal or character references instead. These are people who can vouch for your character, personality, integrity and other positive qualities. They can include community leaders and neighbors.
Q: Can I use my current employer as a reference?
Yes — provided that they know you’re looking for a job, otherwise it could jeopardize your current position. If they’re not aware of your plans to jump ship, consider asking former managers and colleagues instead.
Q: How recent should my references be?
Ideally, they should be from the past 3–5 years. That said, as long as they’re relevant to the job you’re applying for, and the referees only have positive things to say about you, there really isn’t a cut-off period.
Final thoughts
References can play a key role to a successful job search!
Indeed, before an employer makes up their mind about whether to hire you or not, they may want to hear first-hand testimonials about your professionalism, skills and character from people who have worked with you in the past. Therefore, it’s important to pick your referees wisely, and create an impressive references section for your résumé.
Got any other questions about writing your résumé's references section? Let us know in the comments section below!
This article is a partial update of an earlier version originally published in 2017.