How long do you wait after an interview before you move on?

Anonymous

January 3,2024 at 5:49PM UTC

Welcome to Fairygodboss!

We’re the largest online career community helping women achieve their career goals. Gain access to articles, jobs, events, and a supportive network of women and allies. Membership is free, always.

How long do you wait after an interview before you move on?

I had a phone interview with a well-known company about a month ago and was told they would get back with me with the results (no timeline given). There was also no number or email given so I cannot contact them back.

I never expect anything to come from interviews until I get an actual offer, so I'm not holding out for this job or anything of the sort. But how long should one wait before deciding to move on and 'forget' about a job interview after a situation like mine?

Why women love us:

Daily articles on career topics
Jobs at companies dedicated to hiring more women
Advice and support from an authentic community
Events that help you level up in your career
Free membership, always

7 comments

Share your insight

Join an authentic community that helps women support each other at work. Share your professional experience or ask for advice — you can even post anonymously.

7 Comments

Join the conversation

AnonymousJanuary 3,2024 at 6:01PM UTC
Move on immediately. The hiring process is so slow that you might only be on interview 3 of 6 with another company by the time the original one calls back - if at all.
AnonymousJanuary 3,2024 at 6:38PM UTC
Don't wait around- keep looking
AnonymousJanuary 3,2024 at 6:44PM UTC
If the company finds a few great candidates they seem to get back to schedule final interviews within 2 weeks I've found. And 1 week to present their offer.
AnonymousJanuary 3,2024 at 7:57PM UTC
It can easily take us a month to get times for interviews nailed down because of conflicting schedules, and getting an actual offer to a candidate requires HR involvement, which can stretch things out another couple of weeks. My last hire applied in January, promptly participated in an initial phone interview, and started in April (soonest we could pull everything together on our side).
AnonymousJanuary 3,2024 at 8:25PM UTC
You never should stop working on it until an offer has been officially made and accepted. IMO
Ava WestJanuary 4,2024 at 2:18PM UTC
From my experience, if you don't hear back right away, or at least in the same week, you should move on.
Sarah BallJanuary 4,2024 at 6:24PM UTC
I would cast the broadest net possible when searching for a new opportunity. As competitive as the job market is currently, I would not recommend pausing your job search while you wait for an update from 1 company. If you hear back and they want to move forward, great! If you never hear back, or they decide to pursue other candidates you have not lost time in your job search and potentially missed out on other opportunities. Best of luck to you!