career services
FOLLOW-UP LETTERS
Why do you send Follow-up Letters?
Follow-up letters are critical in today’s busy world. Follow-up letters show that you are professional and
interested in the organization, position, etc. It also keeps consistent contact with your networking contacts,
which puts you in a better position to be considered for career opportunities.
Types of Follow-up Letters
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Thank You Letter
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Acceptance Letter
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Declining Offer Letter
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Response to a Rejection Letter
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Withdrawal of Application Letter
Send the appropriate follow-up letters to anyone who has:
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Referred you to employers or other contacts
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Interviewed you for employment
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Offered you a position
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Rejected you for employment
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Provided you with general information
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Written recommendations for you
Timing
Send the letters within 24 hours of the interview, conversation, receipt of letter, etc; but
no more than two days later.
Length of your letter
Keep it to a brief page. Don't stress a lot of details - it's more important to send
something quickly rather than to delay doing it for days.
Personalize each letter
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When interviewing with several people at one organization, take a few seconds between interviews to
write down some notes about each conversation. Use these notes when writing individualized thank you
letters to each interviewer.
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When sending letters to several people at an organization, each letter does not need to be completely
different from the rest. But don't send identical letters to several people - your letters will generally all
end up in your file in the Human Resources department.