How to Respond to an Interview Request Email (Plus Examples)

Responding to an Interview Request

How you respond to an interview request sets the tone for the next steps of the hiring process. You want to ensure your response is prompt and professional while displaying enthusiasm about the opportunity. Let’s review the steps and necessary information you need to structure your response effectively.

Respond promptly

You should respond to interview invitation emails within 24 hours to make a good first impression.

Modern hiring processes are fast-paced. Most applications are filled out online, and many job recruiters communicate with applicants via email for quicker responses. Therefore, while you should put some effort into your reply to an interview request, it’s also important to respond quickly to show eagerness and respect for the hiring manager’s time.

The hiring manager might even have an immediate vacancy they must fill. For example, an opening in an IT team could slow down diagnostic and troubleshooting processes for computer errors, affecting the whole company. So, it’s not uncommon for hiring managers to feel a need to make a decision quickly. Acting too slowly could lead to missing out on great opportunities.

Use a professional greeting

As you may have seen in cover letter templates, a professional greeting is essential at the start of all correspondence.

You always want to address the hiring manager by name, so the message feels specific to them. So, avoid any generic greetings like “Dear sir/madam.” Instead, go with something like “Dear Ms. Adams” or “Hello Mr. Parker.” Beginning with “dear” or “hello” are both safe choices to maintain professionalism.

If you’re looking for something more gender-neutral, you could also address the hiring manager by their first and last name, such as “Dear Evelyn Matthews.”

Show appreciation

Once you get to the interview, hiring managers will ask you questions like “Why do you want to work here?” since they want to bring in new employees who are excited about the role and the organization’s mission.

You can use your response to an interview request to immediately begin showing your enthusiasm and appreciation for the opportunity. For example, you could end your email by saying:

Confirm your availability

If you’ve ever researched how to respond to a job offer, you probably found it best to confirm specific details like your start date and any negotiated terms. You want to take a similar approach when accepting an interview through email.

You should confirm the date, start time, and location of your interview somewhere in your message to avoid confusion and reinforce that you’re planning to attend the meeting.

If you’ve already been given the meeting’s details, it’s best to write this as a statement, such as:

You could also try to incorporate the confirmation into your message naturally, saying something like:

Ask for clarifications if needed

When you’re unsure about any of the interview’s details, it’s always best to ask beforehand so you’re prepared. Knowing all the necessary information can help job seekers feel less nervous ahead of an important interview. Some common clarifications you could ask for are:

• What will the interview format be? Will it be a one-on-one interview or a panel interview in front of a hiring committee? Will the topics be informational about the job’s responsibilities or situational on how you’d handle real-world problems?
• How long will the interview be? It’s good to know an estimated length to ensure the interview’s duration fits your schedule.
• Is there anything I need to bring to the interview? Some companies might want you to bring a copy of your portfolio or resume to the interview. It’s good to know ahead of time to avoid looking unprepared.

You can also ask about any other details you’re unsure of, like the meeting’s location or start time. Even if they gave you the information before, hiring managers don’t mind repeating it to avoid scheduling errors.

Close with a professional sign-off

The way you end your interview acceptance email is just as important as how you begin it since it’ll make the final impression on a hiring manager before they meet with you.

It’s a good idea to close out by thanking them for the opportunity to interview. Then, use a professional sign-off. Good formal sign-offs are “sincerely,” “thank you,” or “best regards.” These are all safe choices that will reinforce your professionalism.

Lastly, end with your first and last name and include contact information, like your phone number, so they can get in touch with you.

Proofread your email before sending

A response to an interview request that’s full of grammatical errors will detract from your professionalism. To avoid making a poor first impression before your interview, proofread your email thoroughly before sending it. You could run it through a grammar checker or have a trusted friend or colleague review it to help with this step.

Tips for Responding to an Interview Request

Now that you have the proper structure and some examples of how to respond to an interview request, let’s cover some tips that’ll help you make the right impact with your response.

Don’t change the subject line

When you receive an interview request through email, you shouldn’t change the subject line when you respond. It’s usually best to respond directly to the email the hiring manager sent you rather than creating a brand new email thread.

Using the same subject line helps hiring managers keep their inboxes organized and will ensure your response stands out when they receive it. After all, most business decision-makers have busy schedules with lots of conversations they need to manage, so anything you can do to keep things organized is essential.

Thank the hiring manager

Always thank the hiring manager for the opportunity somewhere in your message. This will reinforce your enthusiasm for the role and immediately set a positive tone for your interaction.

A good way to make this stand out is to craft a thank-you sentence that sounds specific and personal to each job.

Rather than just saying, “Thank you for the opportunity,” you can expand on this a bit more by saying something like, “Thank you for considering me for the fifth-grade teacher role at Mayville Academy, where I can help make learning more engaging for students.”

Provide your availability

In today’s fast-paced hiring processes, hiring managers want to minimize the time they spend scheduling interviews. Therefore, be specific when you detail your availability for an interview.

Providing an exact day and time or a range of times during the day that all work for you will help streamline this process. That way, you can handle the scheduling process in a couple of quick messages and show how you’ll communicate effectively on the job.

Keep your tone professional

Maintaining a professional tone in your email will show that you’re serious about the opportunity and set a positive tone for how you’ll conduct yourself in the workplace.

It’s always best to be more formal in initial messages with hiring managers since you’re just introducing yourself to them. Later, as you move on to the next steps of the hiring process and potentially get hired, you can narrow in on the tone they use in the workplace and start matching that to fit in with their culture.

Ask questions about the interview

Don’t hesitate to ask questions you have about the interview. Hiring managers like seeing this as it shows your interest in the role and preparedness for the interview. Whenever you communicate well and do what it takes to be successful, it signifies you’ll do the same once you’re hired and join the workplace.