Should I follow up on a job interview?

May 20, 2015 4:02 PM

Don't want to bother the recruiter, but at a loss for what to do

A couple months ago, I had a first interview for a job that went well. The recruiter I interviewed with told me to email her after I had graduated and she would set up a second interview with the team I would be working with. However, before I had a chance to do that she called me to tell me the online application for the job I was applying for was posted, and to apply online (this is a necessary step in the process and as far as I can tell, a formality, since I already had a first interview).

She told me a date that they are conducting interviews for the job, but didn't schedule one with me (i.e., didn't give me a specific time, place to go, etc). She said there were two dates I could choose from depending on "which campus I want," and I told her which I preferred.

I filled out the online application and emailed her to tell her I had finished it and looked forward to scheduling an interview on the date she had mentioned. She emailed me back and said thanks but nothing more.

This all happened a week ago. Should I follow up and ask what the next steps are, or wait it out? I'm not sure if I should assume I have a second interview on the date she mentioned or not (which is coming up fast, so I'd like to able to prepare). I know they are conducting first-round interviews for other applicants this week (more than one person will be hired into this position). I'd like to know what to expect and if I do or don't have an interview, but at the same time of course I don't want to bother the recruiter.

What is the best course of action? Thanks in advance!

posted by queens86 to Work & Money (5 answers total)

Yes, follow up. They are a recruiter, they're used to this. It's not a big deal.

If you want to keep it low key, just email her and ask what the next steps are.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 4:05 PM on May 20, 2015 [5 favorites]

The purpose of recruiters is to recruit people. It is not "bothering" a recruiter to follow up a single time after she fairly explicitly indicated that you were moving forward in the hiring process. It is helping the recruiter out to do her job by a short and concise follow-up to something she strongly implied she was going to do.

1. Case 1: You are no longer in the running for a position. In this case, contacting the recruiter won't change anything, so it doesn't matter what you do.
2. Case 2: You are in the running, and hiring is imminent. In this case, the recruiter is not acting very competently (by ignoring possible candidates), so you might as well remind her. Likely she is dealing with many open positions, all with many applications, and this one just dropped through. This is exactly the sort of case where following up is useful.
3. Case 3: You are in the running, but hiring is not imminent. In this case, a follow-up email should just be met by the recruiter with a, "thanks for the reminder, but we're not there yet" response. If it isn't, you should consider why you'd want to work for a company that treats candidates that way.

Now, all of this changes if you're contacting the hiring manager - you should be more delicate/polite about them, because they, in general, aren't tasked with handling applicants. Even then, however, a single follow-up email should never be met with negativity (however, it may be met with passivity).
posted by saeculorum at 4:09 PM on May 20, 2015 [2 favorites]

Should I follow up and ask what the next steps are

Yes.
posted by JackBurden at 4:33 PM on May 20, 2015 [1 favorite]

Yeah, it's been a week. That is a normal timeframe to follow up. I wouldn't assume anything since she didn't schedule anything, but just ask what is happening next. Maybe something like: "Hi Jane, I just wanted to follow up on the online application I submitted last week for the Widget Assistant role. Is there anything else I need to do to help with the process? I'm very interested in the position and would love to schedule an interview if you are interested. Thanks for your time!"
posted by AppleTurnover at 4:54 PM on May 20, 2015 [1 favorite]

Followup (but don't expect a reply) and also state that you'd also be willing to be considered for any other positions that [the recruiting agent] might be trying to fill.
posted by porpoise at 11:59 PM on May 21, 2015