You sent the application, double-checked everything and then: silence. Should you follow up, or will that annoy the employer? For most roles, a single polite follow-up is acceptable and occasionally helpful. It can bring your application back to the top of someone’s inbox, show genuine interest and give you useful information about the timeline.
The key is timing, tone and knowing when to stop.
When to follow up
| Situation | When to follow up |
|---|---|
| Applied through a job board, no contact name | Usually not necessary; follow up only if you can find the hiring manager or recruiter |
| Applied and you have a contact (recruiter, referral, hiring manager) | About one week after applying |
| Posting listed a closing date | A few days after the closing date |
| After a phone screen or interview | On the date they said they would decide, or one week later if no date was given |
| You received another offer | Immediately, if you prefer this employer |
Before following up, re-read the posting. Some employers state “no phone calls” or “only shortlisted candidates will be contacted”. Respect those instructions.
Who to contact
The best person is someone involved in hiring for that role: the recruiter who posted it, the hiring manager or the person who referred you. If you only have a general HR address, one short email is fine. Avoid contacting several people at the same company about the same application.
How to write the follow-up
A good follow-up is short, specific and easy to answer. Include:
- The exact job title and, if available, the job ID.
- When you applied.
- One sentence about why you are a strong fit.
- A polite question about the timeline.
Keep it under 120 words. Here are templates you can adapt.
One week after applying
Subject: Following up – Operations Assistant application (Job ID 4821)
Hi Ms. Patel,
I applied for the Operations Assistant position on October 6 and wanted to briefly confirm my interest. My internship maintaining shipment records for a regional distributor matches the accuracy and communication skills described in the posting.
Could you share an idea of the timeline for next steps? Thank you for your time.
Best regards,
Jordan Rivera
After a referral
Subject: Application for Customer Support Associate – referred by Sam Okafor
Hi Ms. Chen,
Sam Okafor suggested I contact you about the Customer Support Associate role. I submitted my application on Monday and would welcome the chance to discuss how my experience answering customer questions at the campus help desk could support your team.
Thank you for considering my application.
Best,
Jordan Rivera
After an interview, past the decision date
Subject: Following up on the Junior Analyst interview
Hi Mr. Novak,
Thank you again for speaking with me on October 2 about the Junior Analyst role. I’m still very interested in the position and wanted to check whether there are any updates on the timeline.
I’m happy to provide anything else you might need.
Best regards,
Jordan Rivera
The names and IDs above are examples; use the real details from your own application.
Phone or email?
Email is the default. It is easy for busy people to reply to and leaves a written record. A phone call can work for small local businesses, especially in retail, hospitality or trades, where managers often hire quickly and in person. If you call, have a two-sentence script ready and ask whether there is a better time to talk.
What not to do
- Follow up more than twice for the same application.
- Send a follow-up the day after applying.
- Write a long message repeating your whole cover letter.
- Sound frustrated or entitled (“I haven’t heard anything yet…”).
- Connect with and message the entire team on LinkedIn.
Make follow-ups a routine
Add a Next action date column to your job search tracker and set it to one week after each application with a known contact. Every Monday, sort by that column and send the follow-ups that are due. It takes 15 minutes and keeps your pipeline moving.
After an interview, your first follow-up should usually be a thank-you note sent within 24 hours. Our thank-you email guide has templates for that step.
If you still hear nothing
Silence is common and usually reflects a busy process, not a judgment about you. After one follow-up with no reply, mark the application as closed and move your energy elsewhere. If silence is the pattern across many applications, use our checklist for when nobody responds to find out what to change.
Send the follow-ups that are due
Open your tracker, find every application older than a week with a named contact and send one follow-up today using the templates above.