19 Dos and Don’ts After Job Interview

Job Interview is tough, but there are ways to make a positive impression even after the job interview.

I have had chance to screen resumes and interview candidates. I have had pleasant experience and have also had not so good experience during job interview process and after the interview process.

I’d like to highlight the lessons I have learned when I was applying for jobs as a student a few years back and during job search and job change.

The following tips very well apply to an internship interview.

After Job Interviews – Dos

• Do get the name and title of each person who interviewed you during job interviews.
• Do send “Thank You” letters addressed to each person who interviewed you.
• Do send “Thank You” letters to the HR and ask them to forward the letters to the persons who interviewed you.
• Do customize after the interview each thank you note based on the interview questions/topics discussed.
• Do show enthusiasm in your thank you letter.
• Do ask when will the hiring decision is expected to be made (during interview or interview follow-up email).
• Do wait until you hear from them, even past the day/time they said they will get back to you.
• Do think twice before sending emails or calling the HR or manager before they call you or email you.
• Do have lots of patience and self-belief about the way the job interview went.
• Do think of the “Way you think job interview went is always different form the way interviewer think you performed in the interview”
• Do strongly believe that answering a few questions wrong or not knowing some answers will not hinder your job chances to get jobs.
• Spell check twice before sending “Thank You” letter after an interview.
• Do check if the “Thank You” note is addressed to the right interviewer.

After Job Interviews – Don’ts

• Don’t appear very desperate in your thank you letter.
• Don’t write your Thank You letter in ALL CAPS.
• Don’t call the HR person or Hiring Manager daily asking for interview results.
• Don’t call the Hiring Manager right after the interview (I have seen candidates call immediately after the phone screen asking about their interview performance).
• Don’t burn bridges even if the job was not offered to you.
• Don’t call the number from which manager had called you during the job interview phone screen.

I will update this article as I come across more experience or when I’m able to remember more details from my previous interview experience.

But to get to the interview process, students have to clear a phone screen. And to get to that stage, your resumé has to reach the right person who can decide if they have to interview you.

An effective way to get your resumé into the hands of the hiring manager is to use networking tools like LinkedIn.com and if you are not sure on how to use LinkedIn, you must read my post, Students’ Guide to Network using LinkedIn.

What Next?

Having written this article on dos and don’ts after a job interview, I plan to write the “Do’s and Don’ts” during job interviews and on how to write thank you letters addressed to each person who interviewed you and on how to highlight your positives and rectify any mistakes you made during interviews.

Next: Tricks Job-Seekers Use to Get an Interview.