Following up after your Interview

Dear Tamara, What is the best way to follow up after an interview? The most important thing is to follow up quickly with a thank you note or letter. I know employers who will not offer positions to candidates who neglect to send a thank you note. The general rule is to send something within 48 hours so that you are still fresh in the minds of your interviewers. The thank you note is an opportunity to make a final positive impression before the job is offered. Thank You Letter 101. Thank you notes or letters can be short and sweet, but like your other application materials, they must be professional and error-free. In addition to thanking your interviewers for taking the time to meet with you, you can express that the interview has made you even more enthusiastic about the position and that you feel you would be a great fit for the company. Some candidates restate their most important qualifications or include skills and experiences that they did not have the opportunity to address during the interview. You'll want to send a note to each person you met during your interview and try to personalize them a little. For example, you could mention a specific topic that you discussed or follow up on a conversation that you did not have time to finish. Try to get business cards during your interview so that you have the correct spellings, positions, and addresses. If you didn't have the opportunity to get business cards, call the main number of the company or go to the company's website to find the information that you need. Email or snail mail? More and more people find emails an acceptable form for a thank you note, but use your best judgment to determine the appropriate form for each employer. Younger interviewers in more casual offices seem to be ok with emails as long as they are professional and are sent soon after the interview. An email immediately after your job interview can make you seem particularly enthusiastic about a position (i.e. you are so interested that you couldn't wait to tell them again). An emailed thank you can also be a good option if you know that the job offer will be made before a mailed thank you note could be received. For example, you have an interview on Wednesday and the job offer will be made by the end of the week. In this situation, an email might be your best option. However, there are still many employers who expect a handwritten thank you note or a typed letter and who will frown at the informality of emails. So again, use your best judgment based on the vibe you get from your interviewers and the culture of the company. No news might be good news. At some point in the interview, employers usually mention the timeframe for their job search and give you an approximate date when offers will be made. You can ask about the timeframe if they don't give you that information. Please remember, however, that hiring usually takes longer than anticipated, so don't automatically assume you didn't get the job if you do not hear by the original offer date. Also, the employer might extend a job offer to the first choice candidate, but the candidate asks for a week or so to think it over. If the candidate then declines the position, the employer will go to the second choice candidate. It is appropriate to phone your main contact at the company to see if job offers have been made and if they have been filled, but give them a little time before you start calling. If you already have a job offer in hand and need to make a decision, then let your contact person know, and stay in communication with him or her. Good luck!
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