When the Phone Doesn’t Ring: Tips on Following Up After a Job Interview

When the phone doesn’t ring after you think a job interview went well, you might as well be in your own personal hell. The silence can be deafening, but it’s usually soon replaced by the incessant chatter of your worst critic (the person staring back at you each morning in the mirror!)

It’s important that you don’t get in your own way at this point of the process, because no answer is not the same thing as the answer “no.” If you drive yourself to distraction, or worse, drive the interviewer to distraction in the way you follow up, that rejection may become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Here are some practical tips to deal with the anxiety that comes with waiting for an answer after a job interview, to help you keep your eyes on the big picture. The right job is waiting for you–whether it’s the job you just interviewed for is beside the point.)

Follow Up with the Hiring Coordinator (Diplomatically!)

• E-mail a brief thank-you to the hiring coordinator  and others who assisted with your job interview
• If you didn’t get to ask about timeline, inquire about it in the e-mail to your main contact
• For the first week or two after your job interview, e-mail contact is best.
• After two weeks, if you’ve heard nothing, call the hiring coordinator.
• Reiterate your interest and ask about the timeline (or, if they told you one, ask if it has changed since you last inquired.) It’s possible that other job interviews had to be rescheduled or that other candidates cancelled, and this can postpone the decision date.

Don’t Get Disappointed Until There is a Reason to Be Disappointed

• Colleges and universities are intrinsically bureaucratic, and this slows down many processes. Remind yourself that not hearing back quickly could be a result of this, and not due to rejection.
• Don’t tie yourself to the whipping post. You’ll need your self-esteem if you want to keep moving forward. Not getting a particular job doesn’t mean you aren’t qualified. Not hearing back doesn’t mean you didn’t get a job, either. So letting bad self-talk and self-criticism drive you crazy doesn’t solve anything. Don’t do it!

Whether or Not You Hear Back, Move On

Make sure you read that right. It’s not a typo. I did say “whether or not you hear back,” rather than “when you hear back,” because the reality is that some institutions and hiring agents don’t call applicants they rejected right away, and others don’t call at all. There could be other reasons for this. For example, they could still be interested in you, but only if negotiations or a background check on the preferred candidate don’t pan out. Institutions are loath to release viable finalists after they have interviewed them and liked them. Closing out a process entirely isn’t wise, until they have a written acceptance from another candidate. Nobody likes to start from scratch if you still have candidates you have interviewed, are available, and would hire. And, of course, some people will do anything to avoid difficult conversations, so they may just send a form  letter out at a later time.

The result is that these realities make moving on to the next thing the wisest choice. So after you wait a couple of weeks, make contact, and don’t get an answer (or don’t get the one you wanted), keep moving. Research opportunities and apply for them. Accept more job interviews. Relax, take care of yourself, and keep doing your current job to the best of your abilities. Don’t let rejection (or the mere threat of it) leave you waiting by the phone, despairing over your circumstances. Doing so means that you are choosing to staying stuck, and that’s no way to find your next job.