Not hired...because of post intervie thank you note..yes, really

[Gratefulprn]

Interviewed 2 weeks ago for a position that would work well for me given where I am at physically, emotionally and financially in life right now.....interview went fairly well though it was short. Also strange I knew one of the panel nurses having worked w/him a few years back..what was strange is he told the other interviewers I was mistaken that he and I had worked together in the past (when he introduced himself I said "we've met, we worked together for 3 yrs at ***** clinic. He said nothing...I thought..ok...) Anyway..was told I would hear something either way by the 7th. The 7th came and went no word. I planned to call this week to check on the status. Still thinking it was strange this former coworker acted as though he had never met me - we worked everyday almost together at this clinic. Neither of us have changed to any major degree. So, I have never sent a "thank you" note for an interview - ever. After reading many posts on here it seems this is now the norm so I did -the day after the interview. Fast forward to this a.m. I receive an email from one of the nurses in the interview (the panel had 5 people on it) - she states I will not be offered the position as they felt I was "too anxious" for the position because I mentioned knowing someone on the panel who tells them he did not work where I knew him from but he DID but mostly because I sent a thank you note to the hiring director on the panel and they all thought it was "too aggressive." ALL the note said was I appreciated his time as well as the others and looked forward to hearing from him one a decision was made. THAT WAS IT.

All I can think of is the former coworker has an issue w/me - though I can't imagine what because we worked together well, never had a problem..but after this I will never send another thank you note for an interview again. Though it may have worked for some of you, for me, it most definitely did not.

[SweettartRN]

Strange though. If they worked together for 3 years, I am wondering how he was able to hide that employer on his resume.

On the other hand, I have worked with a couple of people that if they said they knew me, I would deny it 'till the cows come home because I would never want to work with them. Not that this is what happened to the OP, but it's possible.

Chances are though, the guy is definitely hiding something. He probably threw the OP under the bus to keep from being exposed from whatever it may be.

[llg, PhD, RN]

You know ... this guy might really be hiding something from his current employer. Personally, I'd just walk away and stay out of it.

But ... it would be interesting to stir the pot a little and write his current boss to tell them to check his employment. He might be hiding something sinister that should be disclosed.

[Otessa, BSN, RN]

You know ... this guy might really be hiding something from his current employer. Personally, I'd just walk away and stay out of it.

But ... it would be interesting to stir the pot a little and write his current boss to tell them to check his employment. He might be hiding something sinister that should be disclosed.

Do you know anyone still working at the place you both worked for 3 years? That may give you a LOT of insight....... maybe he was fired or quit when asked to leave, etc.

Oh, always send a thank you note/card. Have been part of the hiring process and those that didn't write a note/card/e-mail expressing their interest did NOT get second interviews.

[MaleBSNRN]

That is odd. I went to a "conference" where human resources stated that they rarely receive thank you notes and the few that had spent the time to send a thank you note they hired. The human resource employees were from the manufacturing field though.

On a side note I had 4 interviews and I had sent thank you notes to employees of three of them. I got the job for the position that I did not send a thank you note to. I did shadow for the position though, which was probably what got me the position. I did send a thank you note to the nurse recruiter for a different position so I am not sure how I got the position. I probably got it because I offered to shadow. I hope this helps.

[nursel56]

The person who hired me for a job in 1986 told me that a thank-you card she received seemed creepy to her and eliminated the person from consideration.

Back when there was a real shortage I guess hiring managers were less inclined to have a detail like that rule out a candidate. There may be vestiges of the "just the facts" feeling about it from older or more conservative people. For a few years after I started a staff nurse position only required you to fill out an application.

[Mulan]

I think the thank you note thing must be relatively new.

I never heard of it until I read about it on this site.

I have had many nursing jobs over many years and never sent a thank you note, the thought never even crossed my mind.

[AJPV]

Thank you notes are now taught as standard and expected etiquette. In our senior nursing course, we had an assignment that required us to create a resume, cover letter, and post-interview thank you note. I made sure I had thank you notes in the mail the same day, right after each interview. I figured it might take an extra day for mail to navigate through a hospital's mail system.

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

The person who hired me for a job in 1986 told me that a thank-you card she received seemed creepy to her and eliminated the person from consideration.

But did she say getting a thank you card by itself was creepy, or was it what that applicant had written in the card that creeped her out?

I can't imagine a person being creeped out by a generic "Thank you for the interview and your consideration" message. And if only that "Thank you for the interview and your consideration" sentence is all it took to weird your former boss out, I'm not sure she'd an easy person to work for--I'd think one would perpetually be on eggshells around her in case any little thing bothered her.

[AJPV]

Yeah, maybe the creep-out factor would be valid if the applicant asked the interviewer out on a date

[netglow, ASN, RN]

I will never write a thank you "note". Never personal little invite-like "thanks for the awesome baby-shower" --which is what that feels like to me, and nothing handwritten (OMG).

But I've always written a follow-up business letter that does include a thank you. :)

[nursel56]

But did she say getting a thank you card by itself was creepy, or was it what that applicant had written in the card that creeped her out?

I can't imagine a person being creeped out by a generic "Thank you for the interview and your consideration" message. And if only that "Thank you for the interview and your consideration" sentence is all it took to weird your former boss out, I'm not sure she'd an easy person to work for--I'd think one would perpetually be on eggshells around her in case any little thing bothered her.

I'm not positive, but she did mention it was the "pink hearts and flowers" style so if it had been a more business-like note it may not have had that effect. It's hard to imagine something as simple as a note making or breaking your chances. There are so many subjective cues people communicate (dress, tone of voice, body language, etc) during a first meeting it may have been other factors that caused the over-all creep-out, and the card was the most tangible thing she recalled.

Maybe even the fact that this is California where we tend to be less formal (so I'm told anyway :)) factored into it.

[rn4ever?]

Gratefulprn, I don't see why sending a thank you note would be your fault or should be harmful after an interview. If that former co-worker has had issues with your before or is a psycho, it's not your fault. Don't feel bad about it. If they truly wanted to hire you, they would. If not, then they will come up with a bunch of reasons. If people who work there are a bunch of odd people, why would you want to work there?