Is This Really So Strange?

[BeagleMommy]

Two weeks ago I interviewed for a position at another university and am waiting to here if I got the job (they move slowly due to the number of applications they get for each position).

I mentioned to a friend that I thought the interview went well and that I had sent a thank you card to the two gentlemen who interviewed me (one was the department chief, the other was VP of the division).  In the cards I simply thanked them for meeting with me, expressed that I was impressed with the department (not an exaggeration, I was impressed) and hoped I'd be lucky enough to secure the position.

Friend thought this was the oddest thing she'd ever heard.  She told me she hoped they wouldn't see the cards as me "sucking up" to try to further my chances.  I've done this before with other job interviews, but now I'm wondering if this was inappropriate.

[hobish]

In my industry it would not be odd. It was once the difference between who got the job in my department and who didn't when the running was close.

[girlmusic]

I would think it would be positive, especially if your position would be dealing with students and faculty where courtesy would be a valuable asset. Certainly in my field it would make a candidate stand above the rest...

[rose red]

They taught us exactly this when I went to college a million years ago (ok, 20).  I can't imagine things have change that much since then, so I think you are fine.

[lowspark]

What did your friend think was odd? Writing a TY note for the interview or the wording itself?

It's pretty common to write TY notes for an interview. In my experience, about 25-50% of candidates I've interviewd do. Once a candidate for a position I was interviewing sat just ourside our office (in the lobby) and wrote out her notes, then asked an admin to deliver them to our desks. Often I get a thank you email.

For me, as an interviewer, it wouldn't really make any difference whether I got that note or not, so I don't know if they really help. But heck, they don't hurt!

[Thipu1]

A TY is never inappropriate in a business situation like this. 

It isn't 'sucking up'.  It's a gesture of appreciation and shows a properly 'follow-through' attitude.  Of course, the 'remember me?' aspect of the thing never hurts.   

Best of luck in securing the position.  We're all rooting for you. 

[MacadamiaNut]

Not strange at all and it is definitely good these days as it makes you stand out from the crowd.  The handwritten thank you note/card after a job interview is certainly not commonplace anymore but that doesn't make it non-endearing.  Most candidates send a thank you email, which I am also appreciative of.  But the card always makes me remember the candidate more for some reason.

Would your friend object to a thank you email too?  A phone call?  Anything?  If so, she is sadly mistaken.  A thank you after an interview is standard practice.

[Jones]

It doesn't happen often, but I've received the occasional Thank You for an interview before. I don't see it as sucking up. I do see it as someone taking the job seriously, and the attention to detail usually bumps them up a notch.

[Judah]

Thank you notes for interviews are pretty standard. I have to wonder if your friend has much work experience.

[TootsNYC]

Even the wording is fine.

The follow-up thank-you note can be either strategic or simple. It really doesn't matter.

[lowspark]

Even the wording is fine.

The follow-up thank-you note can be either strategic or simple. It really doesn't matter.

Ya! I didn't mean to imply there was anything wrong with the wording. Just that it seemed odd that your friend would object to sending a TY note and I was wondering if it was something in the wording that she didn't take to as opposed to the act of sending the note itself.

Thank you notes for interviews are pretty standard. I have to wonder if your friend has much work experience.

To the bolded, me too.

[BeagleMommy]

It's a secretarial position.  In high school, those of us in the secretarial track were required to take a business etiquette course and the TY note for an interview was considered standard practice.  That was nearly 30 years ago so I wasn't sure if I've become an "old fogey"  .

Friend is a bit challenged in the etiquette department.

Thanks, Ehellions.  It's nice to know I didn't fall behind the times.

[Momiitz]

My teacher once told me a story. She had interviewed for a job and promptly sent a thank you card to the interviewer. She got the job. The interviewer later told her that many of the candidates were equally qualified but she got the job because she was the only one to send a thank you card and that became the deciding factor.

[yokozbornak]

Thank you notes after an interview are standard practice, IMHO.  You were fine.

[TXJess]

I recently got out of college (Fall 2010) with a business degree, and I was taught to always send a ty note after an interview.