I highly doubt a written reference will be negative.
Job references are very specific and regulated. They won't give out anything in writing which is of a nature that might put you in a position to litigate against them - even if its just a preceptor for one of your rotations. That individual is also an employee & knows what can & cannot be written in a reference.
You could expect the reference to be coldly factual - I was a preceptor for Provigil at Hospital XYZ for his/her medicine rotation from date-date. Provigil completed all requirements set forth for the rotation.
The dreaded comment you might expect if you feel there might be something negative would be: Please contact me at the telephone listed above if you need further information.
That is "employee-speak" for there is more to tell, but legally I can't write it.
Now you know what the preceptor can & cannot do - think what is the worst that can happen?
Did you not know your material, were you unprepared & did you make pharmaceutical mistakes which were not expected of you at the time of your education? That might be hard to understand if you passed the licensure exam. Its also easy to explain, as Hels suggested.
Did you have attendance issues? Now that is a problem!
Did you have issues with blame - not accepting or trying to misplace it? Or - on the flip side - did you always need to be in the limelight? If so, that is going to be a hard one to fix because this preceptor will not put you in the position of being a team player & hospital work is all about teams.
God forbid if you did something illegal - but, you got licensed...so, altho I would't be as forthcoming as Hels suggested, I'd be ready for the question.
Likewise - if you did something to piss people off - refused to dispense, told a physician he/she was wrong, told your preceptor he/she was wrong, put the preceptor in a position of having to apologize for your behavior or overstepping your boundaries - again...be ready to answer the question.
It all depends on if you even get to the interview. If the incident or experience was negative enough - you'll know because you won't be called for an interview. But, it will never get in writing - it will all be done verbally.
Pharmacy is a very small world. You, perhaps learned the hard way.
Good luck!
