Importance of saying "thank you"

By Kevin Enriquez, Campus Representative, Drexel University

Picture this, you just came back from a successful interview and you feel highly confident you will get the job so you sit back, relax and wait for that call because the job is yours. WRONG! You forgot to send a short thank you letter which would've guaranteed you the position. It's no myth, thank you letters are a crucial step of the post - interview process. It's one last opportunity to stand out from other competitors. A good article about this recently showed up in nvdaily.com:

The article reads...

It is imperative that you send your thank you the same day as the interview or at the very latest, the following day. The reason for this is you are still fresh in the interviewer’s mind. Sometimes after too many interviews, interviews tend to blend in to one another. By reminding them of something particular you may have talked about, your letter will stand out.

Should you mail it or e-mail the letter? If you have the interviewers email address, I would send a very brief thank you message and then mail out a hand written thank you note card thanking them for their consideration of you for this position as a couple of closing statements about why you are the right candidate for the job. After all, it is always fun to receive a handwritten card in your mailbox! Make sure that you send thank-you to everyone you have interviewed with that day.

As a business student at Drexel University's Lebow School of business we are told as early as freshman year to send out a thank you letter, its common courtesy and very much part of the interview process. After speaking to a couple recruiters here on campus they emphasize that usually the most capable candidates are the individuals that send thank you letters. Also as part of the thank you letter it's also a way to remind them of who you are. On that note it's safe to say if you want the job; write a thank you letter.