Towards the end of your interview you should have asked the key question about what happens next. Something like “How soon will you make a decision on whom you plan to hire?" This will have given you a time frame; you want to appear enthusiastic but not annoying. If they expect to make a decision within the next week, you need to follow up in a couple of days; for a longer time it is best to wait a week.
One thing you should do, immediately after the interview, is send a thank you email or letter. Send it the same day or, at the latest, on the following day to the person or persons who interviewed you; remember to ask for business cards before you leave the interview. It is a good idea to do this even if the job doesn’t really interest you. In it you should show your appreciation for the employers’ interest in you and stress your interest in them.
Remind them of your qualifications, mention anything important you might have forgotten in the interview and give them any follow up information they might have asked for. These thank you letters can be typed, handwritten or emailed. The most formal is a hard copy, typed letter and it will make you stand out among the other applicants; remember to use standard paper with a matching envelope.If the employer is less formal a hand written note is more personal.
Post it quickly or even have it hand delivered; faxing is another possibility but make sure you have your interviewer’s correct fax number. Email is fine, especially if this is how you have been contacting up to now or you know a hard copy wouldn’t get to him or her in time. It is advisable to write the note in your word processor, where spell and grammar check will get rid of any typos. Then copy and paste it to your email. Whether you use regular mail, fax or email depends on which medium you feel is best for each interview situation. If you receive a job offer before you have had a chance to send a note; thank the employer for both the interview and the offer. You can also accept or decline the offer.
Your follow up phone call depends on the time frame you deduced from your interview question. Let’s say five days after the interview you decide to call. Ask to speak with the person who interviewed you. You should be polite and professional, restate your interest in the position but don’t sound desperate! Ask if they need any further information and if you are still under consideration. Find out when you can expect a final decision.
It’s possible the company may have specifically asked you not to contact them but to wait for them to come back to you. In this case ask when you can expect to hear from them. If you have heard nothing, wait a couple of days and then call or email the interviewer. Ask politely about the status of your job application.
