coopa_troopa

I had a job interview last week, my first ever since moving here, and although I got some positive feedback at the end of the interview, I haven't heard anything since.

Do I just wait to hear? Or is it acceptable to follow up in some way?

Just anxious to know, even if it's a "No"

Jerseygirl

Did you send the interviewer a thank you message?

coopa_troopa

No, as wasn't sure of the etiquette. The interview was Wednesday last week. Do you think it's too late to do that now?

And if it's not too late, would a thank you by email be acceptable? FYI, all correspondence re the job vacancy was done by email.

Jerseygirl

Better late than never. You could send it and perhaps add if they need any further information to please get in touch with you.

coopa_troopa

Thanks for that JG

I just wish I'd have asked sooner, but I felt (probably wrongly) that I would be 'pestering' them, when they obviously need time to review all the interviewees. I'm just not that familiar with the expectations in the job market here.

Bluegrass Lass

All my correspondence for interviews has always been by email, so I've always sent those little thank you notes by email. Just keep it short and sweet along the lines of: "thank you for the opportunity for the interview. I found our conversation regarding xyz very intriguing".

augigi

I've found US HR depts take a LOT longer to get back to you, even when you do get the job!

Poppy girl

Very true, they can take weeks sometimes, where as in the UK you get an interview one week and the position is filled the same week or the following.

Maybe in this instance they are doing some back ground checks 1st.....CT did you authorize them to do so!!..or check past employement history!

emailrob

I would politely email your contact (the person who you dealt with, not necessarily the person who did the interview). It's fine, the worse they can do is ignore you

kimilseung

I thought that too when I was going to interviews. no that I am doing interviews, I do not consider it pestering.

sir_eccles

Definitely send a thank you note, hand written if possible.

I have noticed that the etiquette in these situations is utterly one sided. The applicant must be totally polite and send thank you notes yet the hiring party can seemingly get away with never acknowledging your application, never telling you they aren't interested in you and never telling you you didn't get the job. The only communication you might get out of them is if you are successful even then it's hit or miss.

I think this has gotten worse as the numbers of applicants climb exponentially and increased use of automated website applications that have all sorts of the wrong boxes for us Brits trying to shoehorn our backgrounds in.

Jerseygirl

A thank you note is not considered pestering but sending one does seem to be the thing to do here.


An email is perfectly acceptable, quicker and more reliable.

kimilseung

Like "Have/did you graduate high school", I am not going to say 'no', but I feel slightly dishonest, saying 'yes'

sir_eccles

Q. What was your GPA?
A. Well, I got 4 A-levels and 10 GCSEs.
A. 2:1 means an upper second class degree with honors, which is pretty good really it doesn't mean I got a ropey 2.1 GPA and no I don't know what Magna cum Laude means.

My favorite is in relation to Phds. In the UK you just spend three years self directed research. In the US you usually spend two years doing classes to get a Masters then two years research. So if you mention you spent three years research for a Phd they want to know what classes you took and your GPA of course.

Giantaxe

I'm wary of generalizations on things like this across differing fields. I've never sent such a note and the few I've received as an interviewer I've found cloying and counterproductive. The most I've ever done post-interview is call the hiring manager and/or the HR person dealing with the hiring. And I always make sure to ask during the interview what the post-interview process will be if they have any interest in pursuing things. I'm in software development.