[JSeymourATL]

> I don't have many references because, I'm in graduate school.

You don't need the bad advisor, move on. References are completely over-rated. Still, companies ask for references as some sort of social proof. Curate an alternate list of 3-5 individuals, (old supervisors, employers, senior colleagues, club officers, etc...) these are people who can vouch for you and the quality of your work.

If some one asks specifically for your advisor contact, be candid-- 'we didn't have much of a relationship and don't think he is best placed to comment on my abilities'.

[dexwiz]

To add to that, many professionals will not get a recommendation beyond, "Yes, they worked here." And many recruiters do not look for anything beyond that. There are a whole host of reasons to not give out positive or negative reviews. Most of them related to potential legal issues. Also a neutral review can often be interpreted as a polite negative review if a positive review was given in the past from the same reference about a different person.

This article has more details:

http://www.inc.com/suzanne-lucas/your-former-employees-want-...

[giltleaf]

Woah, interesting article. The perils of a litigious society geez.