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Asking for (or even allowing) 5 letters of recommendation is totally unfair, especially for early career fellowships/grants/jobs. It privileges those with deep wells of social and cultural capital - those who have connections and feel entitled to ask.
Asking for 5 letters of recommendation also exacerbates inequalities among the faculty members writing the letters. Scholars from historically underrepresented groups already do a disproportionate share of the mentoring in academia. And extra letters only make it worse.
My guess: the idea for extra letters didn't come from funders/hiring committees. It came from more privileged scholars saying "Can I submit 4 instead of 3?" And that ratcheted up standards for everyone. (The same kind of negotiation of unfair advantages I talk about in my book).
Thank you for this! I literally didn’t go to my alma mater for grad school because of the letter requirement. As an adult distant learner, I didn’t feel like I had the personal connections to ask for them.
I'm so sorry - these kinds of logistical barriers are so unfair.
I love everything you say and share. THANK YOU.
That is so kind - thank you! I've learned so much from other scholars on Twitter, and especially from scholars of color. And I'm grateful that this platform provides an opportunity to share beyond our own students and colleagues.
I hate LoRs. I have social anxiety and asking for LoRs is like my worst nightmare.
And then the reminders you gotta send cuz folks are busy 
There is NO way introverts and shy people can do this either.
Not to mention the uncompensated labor of the letter writers.
I’ll say. Especially when the odds of getting an interview are so low anyway.
Yes. Why are they needed at all? Who decides anything on the basis of references? Should be on qualifications and experience. Lost count of the times I've been stuck with writing letters because other staff don't respond to student emails or refuse to write them one.
Ties right into who feels comfortable asking and who has had the time to get that level of acquainted with/comfortable with asking x or y or z professors. More often than not those students are white and decently well-off and able-bodied, sitting at an intersection of privileges.
I remember in high school when a teacher told us that submitting > 3 recs for college apps was a red flag because 1) wasting the admissions counselors' time 2) insecurity--why aren't 3 sufficient? 3) How well do they each know you? 5 is way too many.
I will always be grateful to the professors who wrote recommendations for me on the basis of class work only. I had one paid summer research project but no research during the school year, I needed to stuff my classes into 3 years and work part time to pay for college.
I had been raised from birth to never be a bother to anyone (thanks, Midwestern girl culture!) So I was terrified to approach my professors for a letter, knowing that ideally I'd have established a relationship already. They were SO gracious & one even "knew" me from my essay Qs!
It’s high time we admit that most measures used to identify talent are steeped in bias, circumstance, class & privilege. It’s time to rethink!
Yes but isn’t this the point. Fellowships/grants/jobs are not trying to correct inequalities they are trying to find people with enough social and cultural capital to be safe bets.
That said, I think we have all wondered about the utility of these letters. Both as writers and readers!
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