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[Myself]

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[purpleparrot]

In the south you should send them. I don't know about other markets, other posters can speak for those. Really unsure of the effect of them, but this was the consensus among visiting HR reps at our school.

[reasonable_man]

I've done interviewing for my first firm (mid-sized) and my current small firm. I think your best bet is a short, well written, e-mail/thank you. A thank you note will either be lost in the mix or too annoying to scan and include in the resume file. An e-mail is easy to deal with and lets the interviewer know that you cared enough to say thank you. It is also the one chance for the interviewer to see a written work (short work) that demonstrates that you can write without having a ton of help from others (as the note should be specific to the interview).

Send an e-mail. Ditch the "note."

[Myself]

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[reasonable_man]

I've done interviewing for my first firm (mid-sized) and my current small firm. I think your best bet is a short, well written, e-mail/thank you. A thank you note will either be lost in the mix or too annoying to scan and include in the resume file. An e-mail is easy to deal with and lets the interviewer know that you cared enough to say thank you. It is also the one chance for the interviewer to see a written work (short work) that demonstrates that you can write without having a ton of help from others (as the note should be specific to the interview).

Send an e-mail. Ditch the "note."

Sorry, I meant "note" to be all-inclusive, note = thank you email, note, pigeon message, etc.

Does your firm put applicants at a disadvantage if they don't send a thank you email?

I do. And since no one gets to a partner interview without my nod, its a pretty big disadvantage. Not that I need the "thank you" its just a good way to judge the applicant's ability to write.

[Hattori Hanzo]

Don't send for screeners. Do send for callbacks.

[Myself]

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[lolwat]

I always send them. The advice I've gotten and my personal experience leads me to believe that unless you screw up the e-mail, it should never hurt. Whether it helps is questionable, though.

[Anonymous User]

A long-standing controversy. Having been through a couple of hiring cycles (4 years in LS), I've come to this conclusion: Utterly useless for OCI, both screeners and CB, and basically any interviews during the later summer-early fall hiring season. A V100 recruiter has specifically told me he didn't care and didn't know anyone who did.

Off-season and/or at smaller firms, I think they become significantly more important because then it's like any other job application. (Though the hiring partner at a midsize firm did recently tell me flat out not to bother sending him a TY email -- he finds them annoying).

Last, I had an interview on Monday at a tiny firm, and completely forgot to send a TY note - I just remembered when I saw this thread. I am certain that this will hurt my chances. I did the same last fall at a similarly small firm, and I am pretty sure that's why I never heard from them even though I know for fact I was a perfect fit for the job. I forgot in both instances because after dozens of OCI interviews/CB I got into the habit of not sending them. Don't let this happen to you.

TL:DR: Don't bother for OCI and hiring season stuff, but don't let that make you forget to send them for smaller firms and off-cycle interviews.

[h_jane_w]

I can't possibly fathom why someone would be bothered by a thank you note. Unless they're a hardcore green peace activist who doesn't believe in paper.
Personally I always send really overpriced fancy paper thank you notes. nyc market. I have never not gotten a job.

[thesealocust]

Last, I had an interview on Monday at a tiny firm, and completely forgot to send a TY note - I just remembered when I saw this thread. I am certain that this will hurt my chances. I did the same last fall at a similarly small firm, and I am pretty sure that's why I never heard from them even though I know for fact I was a perfect fit for the job. I forgot in both instances because after dozens of OCI interviews/CB I got into the habit of not sending them. Don't let this happen to you.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc. You might as well attribute your interviewing successes and failures to the tides.

I'm not saying it didn't have an impact, because maybe it did. But given the enormous crush of variables (your background/grades/pedigree, the interviews, economic climate, firm needs, personality, etc.) the Powers that Be placed on the Scales of Employability you are certain that it was the thank you card and the thank you card alone that shit-canned your candidacy?

Job interviews are a huge blackbox. It sucks as a candidate to never know why you were passed over, but the after-action paranoia and theorizing is very unhealthy.

[Anonymous User]

Last, I had an interview on Monday at a tiny firm, and completely forgot to send a TY note - I just remembered when I saw this thread. I am certain that this will hurt my chances. I did the same last fall at a similarly small firm, and I am pretty sure that's why I never heard from them even though I know for fact I was a perfect fit for the job. I forgot in both instances because after dozens of OCI interviews/CB I got into the habit of not sending them. Don't let this happen to you.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc. You might as well attribute your interviewing successes and failures to the tides.

I'm not saying it didn't have an impact, because maybe it did. But given the enormous crush of variables (your background/grades/pedigree, the interviews, economic climate, firm needs, personality, etc.) the Powers that Be placed on the Scales of Employability you are certain that it was the thank you card and the thank you card alone that shit-canned your candidacy?

Job interviews are a huge blackbox. It sucks as a candidate to never know why you were passed over, but the after-action paranoia and theorizing is very unhealthy.

Please don't condescend to me. I didn't say I was certain it was the TY alone, I said I was pretty sure it hurt my chances. Think what you want but I have done enough interviews with small entities in my life to get a feel for how they went. In this case, the interviews went OK (in one case, personality was an issue I could tell I was not the type the interviewer was accustomed to dealing with; in the other, I am pretty sure they doubted my interest and commitment to a small firm like theirs given my resume) but I feel that a thoughtful, non-generic thank you letter re-emphasizing my interest would have helped - far far more than anything I've encountered during OCI. I can't exactly explain why, and I shan't be bothering.

[Myself]

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[Myself]

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[Myself]

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[reasonable_man]

A long-standing controversy. Having been through a couple of hiring cycles (4 years in LS), I've come to this conclusion: Utterly useless for OCI, both screeners and CB, and basically any interviews during the later summer-early fall hiring season. A V100 recruiter has specifically told me he didn't care and didn't know anyone who did.

Off-season and/or at smaller firms, I think they become significantly more important because then it's like any other job application. (Though the hiring partner at a midsize firm did recently tell me flat out not to bother sending him a TY email -- he finds them annoying).

Last, I had an interview on Monday at a tiny firm, and completely forgot to send a TY note - I just remembered when I saw this thread. I am certain that this will hurt my chances. I did the same last fall at a similarly small firm, and I am pretty sure that's why I never heard from them even though I know for fact I was a perfect fit for the job. I forgot in both instances because after dozens of OCI interviews/CB I got into the habit of not sending them. Don't let this happen to you.

TL:DR: Don't bother for OCI and hiring season stuff, but don't let that make you forget to send them for smaller firms and off-cycle interviews.

This is pretty good advice right here.

[Anonymous User]

reasonable_man, do you judge emails and written notes differently?

[laxbrah420]

Last, I had an interview on Monday at a tiny firm, and completely forgot to send a TY note - I just remembered when I saw this thread. I am certain that this will hurt my chances. I did the same last fall at a similarly small firm, and I am pretty sure that's why I never heard from them even though I know for fact I was a perfect fit for the job. I forgot in both instances because after dozens of OCI interviews/CB I got into the habit of not sending them. Don't let this happen to you.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc. You might as well attribute your interviewing successes and failures to the tides.

I'm not saying it didn't have an impact, because maybe it did. But given the enormous crush of variables (your background/grades/pedigree, the interviews, economic climate, firm needs, personality, etc.) the Powers that Be placed on the Scales of Employability you are certain that it was the thank you card and the thank you card alone that shit-canned your candidacy?

Job interviews are a huge blackbox. It sucks as a candidate to never know why you were passed over, but the after-action paranoia and theorizing is very unhealthy.

Why does blackbox mean unknown when blackboxes for airplanes record everything and make everything known?

[Myself]

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[marmot8]

Also, are there some people who are so cynical that they actually discount the applicant if they receive a thank you note?

Who knows?
My father got me in the habit of sending thank yous from a young age, and I see no reason why a job interview wouldn't necessitate one. The attorneys are taking time out of their day to meet with you, and it is a way to reaffirm your interest. Just make sure to read it over a few times and have someone else confirm that there are no typos, if possible.

[NYstate]

I dislike thank you notes. I'm giving you a job interview not a birthday present. I get paid to do this. Sometimes thank you notes seem like a pathetic attempt to make up for an interview gone bad. And, my evaluation form goes out about 5 minutes after you leave my office, so it has no practical effect. I'm happy if you just say thank you when you leave.

I'm doing my job not giving you a gift.

I would not ding someone for sending a thank you note. I have never responded to one.

On the off chance that it may impress someone, I see no harm in sending them.

[Myself]

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[lawyerdown27]

I'm in LS in the south, had about ~15 screeners via OCI. Looking back on it, I seriously doubt my TY notes had anything to do with getting call backs from those. I stuck to all emails. As for the handful of call backs I did, I honestly think the same thing - I only think they could have left an impression on interviews where we really clicked (not just "that went well").

TY notes are just one of those things that there isn't a right answer. You just need to survey the situation, including your interviewers, market, older OCI-veteran students, young firm associates you happen to know, etc. and figure out (1) whether it would help, and (2) if it might annoy somebody. Being in the south, I could only hope that it wouldn't annoy anybody, but we all know that's not 100% true no matter where you are.

[NYstate]

Just to be clear, I explained why I find thank you notes annoying in response to the person who felt they were always appropriate . But I would never ding someone or be annoyed with them if they came to the firm over a thank you note. Life is too short to be that petty.

Remember that your interview form leaves my office shortly after you do. Once you leave, you can't change my impression of you. Maybe ask the recruiter at the firm how people feel about thank yous, or maybe just thank them. They can make sure the hiring committee knows about your thank you if they find it relevant.

I don't think sending a thank you note is going to cost you a job offer anywhere. But it may not make any difference either.

[Myself]

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