Around this time of year, you’ll commonly see the same question popping up on law school message boards and in law students’ conversations, “How do I follow up?”.
This question applies to so many scenarios: job and internship interviews, networking events, bar association conferences, and more. You go to the event or the interview, you have a great time, you go home, and then what? The next step is to send a brief follow-up message.
For an event…
Events are less formal than job interviews, so your follow-up message can reflect that.
LinkedIn gives you an opportunity to build your network as well stay connected via updates (but make sure before you start sending requests that your LinkedIn profile is up to date). If you need a refresher on best practices for your LinkedIn profile, check out these tips. When you connect with someone on LinkedIn, you can also add a note. Be sure to personalize this and remind the individual of who you are and how you met.
If you have a specific request such as wanting to invite the person to do an informational interview, sending an email can work better.
Both the LinkedIn message and the email can be short and straightforward. Start with “It was great meeting you at the [X networking event] on [Y date].” And then follow up with your request. For example, “I’d like to add you to my network and keep in touch.” Or “Would you be available sometime next week to grab a cup of coffee and talk more about [Z]?” Simple as that!
For a job or internship interview…
You’ll likely want your interview follow-up to be a bit more in-depth than an event follow-up. Start by thanking the person for meeting with you and discussing the position. . If it’s applicable, highlight a part of the conversation that piqued your interest or an aspect of the position you find especially intriguing. If the interviewer asked for any additional info, like references or a writing sample, be sure to include that in this email as well. And last, but certainly not least, express your enthusiasm for the position.
Since your employer is likely doing other interviews and looking to make decisions in a short time frame, it’s recommended that you send your follow-up email within 24 hours of the interview. If you interview with multiple people, make sure you collect all their business cards at the end of the interview and send each one a personalized email.
An additional tip: Keep a template, like the one below, bookmarked so that after your interview, you can easily pull it up, edit, and send it out! But remember to personalize each email! You don’t want to spam everyone with the same message.
Mr or Ms. XX,
Thank you for taking the time to speak with me today about [X position]. It was great to meet you and learn more about the position. The work your firm/company does with Y and Z is impressive. The experience I would bring with X or Y sounds like it could be a great fit.
I‘m excited about the opportunity to join your team and look forward to discussing the next steps.
Thank you again for your time.
Best,
What’s next…
Job hunting, interviewing, and waiting for those responses can be time-consuming and at times, frustrating. Remember to give yourself some grace as you go through this process and know that it’s a long journey. Celebrate your small wins and milestones as you go.
If you’re looking for additional tips, check out these on law school networking and navigating your job search post-OCIs.