Guest Author - Kristen Welcome

For most of us, a few words of courtesy are a natural part of our day. Someone holds the door for us and we say “thank you.” We purchase a cup of coffee and tell the barista “thank you.” Throughout our work day, we say “thank you” to people who give us compliments, bring us assignments, help fix the jammed copier, or lend us a pen. We even say “thank you” to the police officer who hands us a speeding ticket. But when someone reviews our resume, calls us for an interview, and takes the time to interview us about our qualifications, it’s astonishing how many job seekers go home after an interview and completely forget to send a post-interview thank you letter.

Sending a thank you letter after an interview is not just a matter of common courtesy, it can also help you to get the job you’re seeking. By demonstrating to the interviewer that you are thoughtful and appreciative, it reminds the interviewer of your fine qualities and reinforces the idea that you are someone they might enjoy working with.

A thank you letter also helps to keep you fresh in the interviewer’s mind, even while they may be busy interviewing competing candidates. Additionally, since many of the interviewees will fail to send thank you letters after their interview, a thank you letter will help you to stand out from the crowd and show that you are someone special.

The best kind of post-interview thank you letter is short, simple, and to the point, and ideally it should be received by the interviewer very shortly after your interview so that the interviewer will not have had time to confuse you with any other interviewee in the meantime. The best way to do this is to draft the thank you letter and mail it the same day as the interview.

The thank you letter should, naturally, thank the interviewer for their time, saying that it was a pleasure to meet with them. It should also remind the interviewer of some aspect of your conversation with them, to refresh their memory of the interview. If you have found an article or other reference that is directly related to a topic of conversation you had with the interviewer that you believe they will find interesting, this can also be included to help you stand out from other candidates. Finally, the thank you letter should close by saying that you look forward to hearing from them. This polite closure to the letter encourages the interviewer to get back to you quickly with their decision.

Although interviews can be draining events, remembering to write and mail a thank you letter promptly following an interview can help to distinguish you from other candidates and remind interviewers of why they should hire you. Remember that a little courtesy can go a long way!



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