So you may have received an interview invitation. You have a choice. Most times you will send an interview confirmation email. However, sometimes you may need to send an interview decline email. There is an astounding number of reasons why you might consider withdrawing yourself from the pool of applicants from the interview of a job that you may have otherwise accepted with open arms.
You may find, soon after applying for the job that it no longer seems like an ideal match for you, or you may receive an alternative offer that promises much better prospects.
Either way, if you are offered the opportunity for an interview, while the convenient thing to do might seem to be ignore the invitation all together, the more polite response, would be to in fact – respond with an interview decline email.
An interview decline email speaks not only of the quality of your character, but may also lead the recipients of the letter to consider introducing certain incentives that may encourage you to take the job – that is, if they consider you an ideal fit for it.
Here are a few tips going in:
- Respond Promptly:
It would be somewhat counterproductive to wait till the last minute to send the interview decline email if your intention is to leave a good impression. As soon as you are asked to come in for the interview, let the company know that you would be unable to make it – If not for anything, to re-open the slots for other interested candidates.
- Be Polite:
Show your appreciation for being chosen for the interview, while highlighting your regret that you would be unable to make it. Let the company at least know that you were pleased with the offer.
- Be Honest
State the exact reason for declining the interview. In the event that it is for reasons you choose not to explain, simply state your reasons as such – keynote however, do not lie.
- Address the Email To the Interviewer
Find out who was scheduled to interview you and express your gratitude to them, while addressing them directly in the email.
This should leave a good impression for future contact.
Before you write your email!
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Sample Email to Decline An Interview
Subject: Re: Interview Offer
Dear Mr Mac,
I am writing with regard to the job interview earlier offered me by your prestigious institution.
I appreciate your consideration of me as a potential staff, as I am well aware of – and the reputation of your organization goes ahead of you.
While I am thoroughly grateful for the opportunity, I would also like to politely decline on the basis of a similar offer I have recently received from ABC Corporation, which I have decided to accept after immense consideration.
I hold your institution in high regard, however, and I am certain that you have received numerous applications from which you will choose a more than adequate candidate for the job.
Once again, I am grateful for your kind consideration.
Sincerely,
Mabel Jones.
After all said and done, what is a job compared to the warmth of fostering friendships and maintaining a pool of contacts on which you could rely while on the best and worst of life’s winding roads?
