1. MAP Homepage Reference Request and Reference Letter Creation System - Staff View All staff will have access to the following section called Academic References. It will be situated towards the bottom of the MAP homepage, depending on what other sections the staff member can see. This will allow the member of staff to do one of four things: 2 3 4 5 2. Request Reference Letter (On Behalf of a Student) this section is for a staff member as a requester of a reference letter not a referee who is creating a reference letter.
This allows a member of staff to request a reference letter on behalf of a student who no longer has access to MAP i.e. they have graduated but they would still like a reference letter. This process goes through the same steps as the student request process, but has an added step at the beginning allowing the member of staff to search for the student using their student number or their full name. The next step allows them to choose the degree which they want to be associated with this particular letter request. Once a student and their degree have been chosen, the staff member can then begin to create and log a new reference letter request.
The next step allows the staff member to choose whether this reference letter request is for the purpose of further education or employment. The next step allows the staff member to search for a referee (this will be who the reference letter gets sent to).
The next step allows the staff member to choose the format in which the letter will be sent as. The next step allows the staff member to enter the details of the destination. If either email or post are chosen on the previous step, this screen allows the staff member to type in the email or the postal address for the reference letter s destination.
The next screen allows the staff member to add any additional notes that the student has specified to let the referee know about. Clicking Confirm logs the reference letter request and takes the staff member to a confirmation page. It also sends a confirmation email to both the student and the staff member logging the request.
Staff confirmation email: Student confirmation email: 3. The See All (n new) link This is situated next to the heading Reference Requests For You (Staff Name) and it allows the member of staff to go to a page showing all of their reference letter requests which they have yet to start or are in progress, also showing how many new requests they currently have. Reference letters which are completed will be displayed for a limited period only. (Note that this link is only available when there are reference letter requests associated with the person logged in some members of staff may never have any reference requests).
4. The table below the heading Reference Requests For You (Staff Name) this section is for a staff member as a referee (someone that the request has been sent to, and someone who has to fill out the reference letter for a student). This allows the member of staff to view the details of the three most recent requests for them, sorted by Date Requested. 5. Start/Continue Each link in this column allows the staff to either begin a new reference letter or continue one they already have in progress. Scenario: Referee decides to start one of their new reference letter requests by clicking Start (this means that they have not yet started this task at all). The first page displays the details of the reference letter request.
The next page allows the referee to score the student according to different sections. There is the option for this section not to be included if the referee so desires (the checkbox can be ticked). The next page has a prepopulated text box which the referee can edit into their own words. The next page allows the staff member to choose which sections they want to include in the reference letter. This section depends on the student details eg. The Placement Details option will not appear if the student has not been on a placement.
The next page allows the staff member to change their contact details that will be displayed on the reference letter. The last page is a preview of the reference letter the staff member has created. There is the option to go back and change sections if the staff member is not happy with the letter they have created.
Scenario: Alternatively, the referee may choose to continue a reference letter they started previously. To do this they would click on Continue and they would be taken to the page that they left off on before. Overall Functionality A reference request must be made by either a student or a member of staff on behalf of a student before a reference letter can be started. All reference requests will be logged and will be available immediately and directly on the referee s MAP account. Only students who are enrolled for the current academic year can create a reference request to an academic member of staff. Any member of staff can request a reference letter on behalf of a student. Example Scenarios 1. A student, who is currently enrolled and has access to MAP, would like to request a reference to a member of academic staff John Smith. They would log onto their MAP account, find the section that s called Reference Request and click the link Request a Reference Letter. If necessary, they would check the referee column of the list of their previous requests to see if they have already sent a reference request to John Smith recently. 2. A student who graduated in July 2013 wants to request a reference letter from John Smith in October 2013. They would not be able to access the Reference Request section in MAP so they would need to contact a member of administrative staff who would then log into their own account, find the section called Academic References and click Request a Reference Letter (On Behalf of a Student). They would then be able to search for the student using their name or student number, and then go through the steps to log a new request. Once this process is complete, John Smith would receive a new request on their MAP account.
3. An academic member of staff receives an email from a student asking for a reference letter. Rather than filing the email away somewhere to be forgotten, the referee can log the request using the Request Reference Letter (On Behalf of a Student) link on their own MAP account quickly so they can easily begin the reference letter when they have the time. This way, their reference letter requests are all kept in one place.