HR Email

Post-interview rejection email

This post interview candidate rejection letter or rejection email template can save you a lot of time when sending negative responses to candidates after the interview. Use this customizable candidate rejection letter or rejection email template to inform candidates about disqualifications in different stages of your interviewing process. Writing and sending a clear and positive rejection letter orrejection email is crucial for ensuring a great employer branding and improving your candidate experience, which can have a direct outcome on your future hiring success.

Post-Interview Rejection Letter

➡️ Download The Ultimate Candidate Interview & Employee Onboarding Checklist!

What is a post-interview rejection letter or rejection email?

A post-interview rejection letteror a rejection email is a document an employer sends to job candidates who did not make it into the next phase of your selection process after the interview.

The importance of a post-interview rejection letter or rejection email

Writing and sending a clear and positive rejection letter or a rejection email is not only a kind but a proper and professional way to address your candidates who invested a lot of time and effort in your selection process.
According to the LinkedIn survey, 94% of talent wants to receive interview feedback.
Consequently, in order to ensure a great employer branding and improve your candidate experience, it is important to provide a clear explanation of the main reason for disqualifying candidates after the interview.
Providing interview feedback to rejected candidates is crucial because, despite popular belief, a candidate’s experience doesn’t end when you decide not to hire them. Candidates that don’t make the cut for this position may be a perfect fit for some other current or future job opening.
Building a good talent pool and being ready to find and hire quality candidates is essential for more productive and faster hiring process.

How to use this template for post-interview rejection letter or rejection email?

To help you save time, we have created a standard post-interview rejection letter or rejection email template. Use and customize this rejection email or rejection letter to suit your needs, and send it via email or traditional mail.
It is very important to briefly but clearly explain the reason why the candidate did not pass to the next round of your hiring process. Please provide your candidates with some constructive feedback and details about why you decided to reject them after an interview.
If you want to address a job applicant whose resume you reviewed, use Applicant rejection letter template. If you want to address candidates who made it to the next phase of your selection process (e.g. assignment), but who weren’t invited to an interview, use this Candidate rejection letter template.

Template for a post-interview rejection letter or rejection email

Here is a standard rejection letter or rejection email template. Feel free to customize it to fit your own needs!

Post-interview rejection letter or rejection email template

Dear [insert candidate’s name],
Thank you for giving us the opportunity to meet you and interview you for a [insert your job position title] with our company. We really appreciate your interest in joining our company and we enjoyed talking to you.
It is always difficult to choose among the excellent candidates whom we interview, especially when we have highly talented candidates like we really did have this time. Although we would be delighted to welcome you all in our team, in the end we had to choose a candidate whom we believe most closely matches the job requirements of our position at this moment.
Though your [insert applicable: education/qualifications/working experience/skills] are impressive, we have decided to move forward with a candidate whose [insert applicable: education/qualifications/working experience/skills] better meet our needs for this particular role at the moment.
Our decision was based on nuances and you were an exceptional candidate for our job.
We truly do appreciate your expertise in [insert applicable industry] and interest in our company, so we hope you’ll keep us in mind and apply again in the future. We strongly encourage you to do so, because you were really among a few top candidates we had an honor and pleasure to meet.
If you have any questions or need additional information, I would happy to answer. Please don’t hesitate to contact me by email [insert your email address] or phone [insert your phone number].
We thank you for the time, energy and effort you invested in your our selection process and we wish you every personal and professional success in your future endeavors.
Once again, thank you for your interest in working with us and we hope to see you again soon!
Kind regards,
[insert your first name and last name]
[insert your job position title]
[insert your company’s name]

Need more HR and recruiting templates like this post-interview rejection letter or rejection email? Check templates for Human Resources and templates for Recruiters.

See TalentLyft in action

Applicant Tracking, Recruitment Marketing, Sourcing and Talent CRM software are powerful alone, but unstoppable when used together!


Related content

Explore more topics

  • Candidate Relationship Management

    Improve your hiring process with effective Candidate Relationship Management (CRM). Build and nurture strong relationships with candidates by leveraging CRM tools to engage, communicate, and maintain long-term connections. Enhance candidate experience, increase retention, and create a robust talent pipeline for future hiring needs.

  • Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

    Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have become key focuses in building a thriving workplace culture—and for good reason. In our DEI Hub, we provide strategies, insights, and best practices to help HR professionals, business leaders, and change-makers champion a more inclusive and equitable workforce. Join us in fostering diversity and empowering employees by exploring a wide range of DEI topics, from inclusive hiring practices to creating a workplace where all voices are heard and valued.

  • Recruitment Metrics

    If you can't measure it, you can improve it. Or something like that. Either way, tracking metrics is in the recruitment process is crucial to see what works and what doesn't. Dive in to this topic to learn all about the most important metrics to track and how they can help you optimize your hiring process.

  • Conducting Interviews

    Interviews are the make-or-break phase of the recruitment process as this is where you truly get to know the candidates and try to get the best out of them. Effective interviews require preparation and use of the right methods and strategies to get the most from a limited time frame. In this blog section, we dive into the art of conducting interviews, exploring the best tactics, the most efficient methods, and useful strategies to make you a better interviewer.

  • Turnover and Retention

    Reduce turnover and improve retention with proven strategies. Learn how to identify the causes of employee turnover, implement retention programs, and create a positive workplace culture that fosters loyalty. By focusing on employee engagement and satisfaction, you can retain top talent and strengthen your organization’s long-term success.

  • Recruiting Stats

    Stay informed with the latest recruitment statistics that can help you refine your hiring strategies. Discover key metrics on time-to-hire, candidate sourcing, retention rates, and more. Use these data-driven insights to improve your talent acquisition processes and make better hiring decisions.

Simple and affordable recruitment software