Key Takeaways
- A thank you email should be sent within 24 hours of an interview with the intended goals of leaving a positive impression and reiterating your interest in the position (see sample below).
- It’s important that your thank you email be sent from a professional email address, written authentically, and kept short and sweet.
- When writing your email, be sure to consider who you are talking to, be authentic, actually say “thank you,” show your enthusiasm, be clear about your interest in the role, and end on a positive note.
Congratulations on your recent job interview! Now, you might be wondering, “How do I follow up without sounding too generic or over the top?” While you recognize the importance of expressing your gratitude, you aren’t exactly sure how to say it or the level of detail you should include—don’t worry, you’ve come to the right spot for guidance.
Writing a thank you email after an interview is a great way to put yourself in front of other applicants by leaving the employer with a positive impression of you. It’s also one last opportunity to reiterate how much you want the position before they make a decision—so get your typing fingers ready. We are here to walk you through the step-by-step process of what to include in a thank you email after an interview, including the etiquette that comes with it. and of course, we have examples to help!
What Is a Thank You Email For?
Simply put: if a company selected you to have a conversation about a job—it deserves a thank you. You know those thank you cards you wrote after graduation? This is the same thing, but for your career. This email is an opportunity to express your gratitude to the company for taking the time to interview you for a job. It’s one last chance to tell them how interested you are and it demonstrates your professionalism.
Trust us, this is something employers notice and admire. In fact, 68% of hiring managers feel like thank you emails make an impact in hiring decisions and say that if you aren’t sending a thank you email, you could be hurting your chances of landing a job. After all, imagine that a company interviews 50+ candidates and you’re the one who sends a thoughtful follow-up email. Whose name are they more likely to remember? Probably yours.
The Dos and Don’ts of Sending a Thank You Email
Before we break down what you need to include in a thank you email, let’s make sure you know the dos and don’ts before you press “send.”
Dos
- Do remember to send an email within 24 hours of your interview.
- Do send it from a professional email address. This should look clean and simple like: [email protected].
- Do write it from Don’t copy and paste from AI to write your message—employers can tell.
- Do give it a catchy subject line. Example: Thank you for the interview—Excited for this opportunity! It should be clear, yet enough to grab their attention.
- Do keep it short and sweet. They’ve already seen your resume, and cover letter, and had a conversation with you. You do not need to reintroduce yourself all over again.
Don’ts
- Don’t be too detailed. You want them to remember your gratitude, not your long-winded email.
- Don’t make requests. The company isn’t looking to add to their to-do list—they just need a genuine thank you.
- Don’t skip proofreading. Read it over (twice) or have someone else take a quick look. Make sure the email sounds polished.
How To Write a Thank You Email After Your Interview
Here is the step-by-step process for writing a thank you email after your interview:
1. Consider Who You Are Addressing the Email To
First and foremost, you need to ensure that you send your email to the correct person. It needs to be written to the person, or group, who conducted the interview. You’ll also want to make sure that how you address them is what you called them by in the interview—if they told you to call them by their first name, then you may refer to them as such.
2. Be Your Authentic Self
We aren’t saying be so casual that you are using texting language like btw or lol, because this isn’t your group chat—you still need to be professional, but don’t force it. You do not have to match their tone. If you’re truly a good fit, your communication will naturally click, both in the interview and in your follow-up email. However, it is also okay to use the company’s language—if they refer to a product or process using specific terms, you can mirror those. This tactic may even give you bonus points for paying attention to the company’s culture.
3. Say “Thank You”
Begin your email by getting straight to the point—saying thank you. Remember, the whole reason you’re sending this email is to express your appreciation, so make sure that’s clear from the very first sentence. People value acknowledgment of their time, so never ignore the power of the simple phrase “thank you.”
4. Show Your Enthusiasm (Without Overdoing It)
Here’s your moment to remind them why you are excited about the role, but make sure you keep this brief. Remember, they know you are qualified—that’s why you made it to the interview—you do not need to oversell yourself. Instead, call out something specific from the interview, such as their team dynamic or a company value, and how it resonated with you. Keep it natural and say just enough that it also reminds them of your conversation.
5. Be Clear About Your Interest (Or Disinterest) in the Role
If you have interest in the job, say it. Employers like to know where you stand after an interview. However, if you realized during the interview that this job might not be the right fit for you, it’s just as important to let them know. Honesty will save everyone’s time.
6. End With Restating Your Thanks and Offer to Answer Any Questions
Wrap up your email on a positive note by restating your thanks. Keep it concise, friendly, and polite. Let them know you are also available to answer any follow-up questions or concerns they may have had come up during, or after, the interview.
Thank You for Your Interview Sample Emails
Here are a sample email and an email template to reference as you start to write your own after interview thank you notes:
Sample Thank You Email Letter to Send After An Interview
Subject: Thank You for the Opportunity
Dear Mr. Collins,
Thank you for taking the time to meet with me today about the Marketing Coordinator position at BrightHouse Media. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about your team’s creative approach to social media campaigns and how you plan to launch your new platform this quarter. It would be a privilege to get to be a part of something like that.
Hearing about how BrightHouse is finding innovative ways to brand themselves through social media made me even more excited about contributing to your growing success. Working with other creatives is a passion of mine. If you have any follow-up questions, please know I am available and happy to answer them.
Thank you again for your time and consideration.
Best regards,
Taylor Jones
Thank You Email Template
Subject: Thank You for the Opportunity
Dear [Interviewer’s Name],
Thank you for your time and consideration for the [Job]. I really appreciated learning more about [position] and the [specific work] your team is doing at [Company]. Our discussion about [specific topic or project] was especially interesting and has only further confirmed how excited I am to potentially work with others who share the same enthusiasm for [specific job].
If you have any follow-up questions or need further details about my qualifications, I’d be happy to provide them. Thanks again for considering me for the role, and I hope to stay in touch.
Best regards,
[Your Name]
NOTE: While this template is a great starting point, it’s important that you don’t just copy and paste it, and then fill in the blanks. Hiring managers can tell when an email feels overly generic. Instead, use this template to structure your email and then personalize it to make it your own.
A Simple Thank You Goes a Long Way
It may not seem like a big deal, but you’d be surprised how well received a thank you email is. What may take you less than 10 minutes to write, could be what helps you land your dream job. Use these steps to help guide your email, keep it authentic, make sure it’s professional, and make them remember you. Best of luck to you!
Still career searching? Did you know College Raptor has a free Career Finder tool? It can help you find careers that align with your major, and show you stats on salaries, job openings, required necessary skills, and more!
