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How to nicely decline an interview
- Thread starter peppy6
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Obviously I had to reply to this because of your name.
I would suggest emailing them something along the lines of "Unfortunately I will not be able to attend an interview with your program. I appreciate your consideration of my application." There is no need to get into a long explanation. If you make it sound like a big deal then they'll think you're full of yourself. You also want to be careful that you don't make it sound like their program is not good enough for you.
I think programs expect people to have to cancel/decline interviews and it is not a big deal. They do really hate it if a person who scheduled an interview doesn't tell them they're not coming and they waste an interview slot on a no-show, so just make sure that you don't no show anywhere!
Good luck, fellow peppy.
I would suggest emailing them something along the lines of "Unfortunately I will not be able to attend an interview with your program. I appreciate your consideration of my application." There is no need to get into a long explanation. If you make it sound like a big deal then they'll think you're full of yourself. You also want to be careful that you don't make it sound like their program is not good enough for you.
I think programs expect people to have to cancel/decline interviews and it is not a big deal. They do really hate it if a person who scheduled an interview doesn't tell them they're not coming and they waste an interview slot on a no-show, so just make sure that you don't no show anywhere!
Good luck, fellow peppy.
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KUDOS Peppy's
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Also consider letting the program know as soon are you're certain you will be declining their interview invitation. It's courteous to the program and your fellow applicants as it allows time to offer the interview slot to somebody else. Cancelling a day or two before, while not as bad as just not showing up, still isn't ideal.
As far as the hotel room goes, yes. Same approach. They should be able to cancel the hotel room for you if they are taking care of the booking. Some places may ask you to cancel it.
Just communicate with them in a polite and respectful manner and everything will be fine.
As far as the hotel room goes, yes. Same approach. They should be able to cancel the hotel room for you if they are taking care of the booking. Some places may ask you to cancel it.
Just communicate with them in a polite and respectful manner and everything will be fine.
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agree with below. as to the actual wording, i think i used something like, "Thank you for your consideration, but I respectfully wish to withdraw my application from your residency program."
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Similar question: what do you do if you receive an interview invitation from a program you really like but all the dates provided are taken up by other program interviews? Is it inappropriate to ask to switch the other program to another date? Is that like essentially saying "You're a backup and something better has come along, but hang on, in case this doesn't work out"?
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This is a time to go after your priorities. The programs understand that you have to switch things around sometimes. As mentioned above, always try to give them as much time as possible to invite others to your vacated date.
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This happens every year-- we understand that applicants may need to switch dates around. As posted by others, there is no need to give us too much information, just a heads up. Also, try to let the program know as soon as possible so that a) we actually have an alternate date to give to you; and b) so that we can fill the slot with another applicant who might be waiting on your date.
A good email is something along the lines of "Dear Coordinator: I am scheduled to interview at ABC program on December 15, but I have had an unexpected scheduling conflict arise." Then, if you DON'T want to reschedule the interview, just say that you need to cancel the interview and that you appreciate that the invitation. If you DO want to reschedule, ask for any other available dates.
Don't, however, say what one applicant emailed to me last year, which was, "I am no longer interested in training at your institution or in your city." (Yikes.)
