Top 6 Candidate Messaging and Email Templates for Every Stage of the Interview Process

There is no substitute to a handwritten, personalised note particularly written for the candidate. You can begin by creating a candidate email template of the message and then doing a few edits as per the candidate and the situation to further enhance this authentic growing professional relationship.

Here, in this article, we will discuss some candidate email templates for every crucial stage of the recruitment process.

1. Consideration

After the interview, if your team has put your candidate under consideration, and they have not yet arrived at the final decision, then your message to the candidate must inform them about the current status.

You must also inform about the possibility that he/she might get selected without giving any promises about the same. Add complete transparency in your candidate email template.

Dear (name)
Thank you for your interest in the interview process for the (job title) position at (company name). The team had a good time interviewing you for the role.

We still have a few more interviews lined up over the next week with other candidates, but we intend to complete our interviews by (date) and would make a decision by (date). We will stay in touch with you and reach out to intimate you about the next steps as soon as we complete all interviews.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Sincerely,
(Name)

In this message template, you have provided a clear timeline to the candidate. This alleviates the unnecessary anxiety of the candidates, plus, it states to the candidate about their chances of recruitment.

The essence lies in being authentic with your communication. If you follow a fixed timeline, inform the candidate about it. If there is no fixed timeline, honestly explain the unavoidable factors that could cause a delay in arriving at a decision.

2. Request for a follow-up round of interview

After conducting the initial rounds of interview, if you want the candidate to visit again for another meeting, you must precisely clarify the reason why they are being called yet again.

It is important to differentiate the meeting from other meetings for two main reasons:

• To allow the candidate to prepare for specific types of questions
• To reassure that this meeting is part of the strategy and that the candidate is not merely jumping around in hoops

Dear (name)
Thank you for your interest in the interview process for the (job title) position at (company name). We would like to invite you for one more round of interviews.

For this round, you will be meeting:
(add name), (title) for (length of the meeting)

The goal of this interview is to (add the objective or purpose of the interview. For instance, to seek detailed information about your skills, experience and qualifications).

So, can you make yourself available on (date and time) at (location)? If not, do let us know about two other dates when you would be available for the meeting. We will try and set it up on a day and time of your convenience.

The team looks forward to meeting you to learn more about you.

Thank you once again for your interest.

Sincerely,
(Name)

At this stage, it is important to provide detailed information to the candidate, as these would be the additional rounds, over and above the pre-decided rounds of the interview.

Therefore, the candidate should understand the reason for this additional round. And, by sharing the specifics with the candidate, you allow them the opportunity to prepare well for the meeting.

3. Making a job offer

It is one message that every candidate expects to receive. It is also the most crucial aspect of the recruitment process.

Dear (name)

With immense pleasure, we would like to formally offer you the position of (job title). This is a fulltime/parttime role with the (annual/hourly) salary of (mention salary). You will need to report to (reporting manager name) at the (department name) located at (location/address). You are requested to join on (date).

Also find attached (formal offer letter, appointment letter, employee benefits letter, etc). We need you to sign on all the documents and return to us by (date). We are thrilled to extend this job offer and are excited to have you join our team.

Sincerely,
(Name)

By this point you will have built a good rapport with the applicant, therefore, you could add a touch of personalization and familiarity to the message. You must convey excitement and positivity on the new chapter of the candidate’s life. At the same time, you must include every important detail you want the candidate to know and understand.

4. No match

It is challenging to be the bearer of bad news, however, it is inevitable in the life of an HR recruiter. A recruiter must be the recipient as well as the bearer of decisions that are not always in a candidate’s favour. But still, the most important factor is to share in such a manner that there is still room for nurturing the professional relationship beyond the recruitment process. Using compassion in your tone will reflect the employer brand and company culture of the organization.

Dear (name),

Thank you for being a part of the interview process for the (job title) position at (company name).

Your conduct in the interview was satisfactory. But we decided to offer the position to another candidate with more experience as they would be better aligned with the role.

We wish you good luck in your career. Do stay in touch and feel free to apply for future openings.

Sincerely,
(Name)

Keep the message short, simple and sweet. Thank the candidate for participating in the interview process. Explain the reason for their disqualification, and end the message on a positive note by asking her/him to stay in touch and apply for future openings. The best way to say “no” to a candidate is to say it diplomatically, i.e., without degrading the rejected candidate and without talking highly about the candidate selected in her/his place.

Candidate email template examples

Let us take a look at a few candidate email template examples as well for different stages of the recruitment process. Recruiters can use these to effectively convey the message and build a positive connection with the candidate.

1. Phone interview email

When you write an email to the candidate to invite her/him for the interview, you must include specific details in the email, such as interview date, time and location. If possible, also include the interviewer’s name and the duration of the interview.

The email invite for phone interviews is generally the first email interview invite a recruiter sends to the candidate. So, thank them for participating in the recruitment process and highlight the basic requirements of the available positions.

Dear (candidate name),

Thank you for sending your job application for the post of (job title) at (company name). Your application has been shortlisted for the next round.

We wish to invite you for a phone interview to discuss and know more about your job application for the role of (job title). We would like to use this opportunity to know more about you and tell you about our company.

Sincerely,
(Name)

2. Phone interview email

Your invitation for an in-person interview, on-site, should include specific details about the date, time and location of the interview, followed by what kind of documents do you want the candidate to carry for it. You could also provide them with the map location of the office.

Dear (applicant name),

Your application has been selected after screening through all the applications for the position of (title) at (company name). We wish to extend you our invitation for the first round of the personal interview on (date and time) at (enter office address).

The interview would be conducted by (manager name, designation). The interview would last for about (duration in minutes). You will get the opportunity to discuss the job position, learn about the company and clear your doubts if any.

Kindly cooperate with the security personnel in creating your security pass before entering the building.

Sincerely,
(Name)

These are some of the best candidate message and email templates for every stage of the recruitment process. As a recruiter or employer, you may not have the time to write a personal message on every candidate who is part of the recruitment process. All you can do is create a standard message template and then customise it as per your requirement.