What Does It Mean When the Recruiter Says “We Are Still Interviewing Other Candidates”?
Ten days have passed and you haven’t heard back from the recruiter. You send an email asking for an update, and they tell you that they are still interviewing other candidates. What does this mean?
I know many recruiters will tell you to not read much into it and that it means exactly what it says. But let’s be real here. Sure you still have a chance, but let’s consider some of the most common scenarios:
- They just started interviewing and would like to interview several other candidates before deciding.
- An interviewer or a decision-maker is on vacation and the hiring process is moving slow.
- You are not the top candidate and they are still looking for a candidate that is more fit for the job. Or they have already extended an offer to a candidate and waiting to hear back.
Although scenario #1 is possible, it is unlikely that a company would leave a candidate that long without an update if they thought that you are a top candidate for the job.
Scenario #2 is possible as well, but I would think that most recruiters if they are interested in you, would explicitly tell you that a decision-maker is on vacation. I had recruiters update me a few days after the interview to let me know that a decision-maker is on vacation.
This leaves us with scenario #3, which is the most probable situation. Think about it, if you were a recruiter, would you leave a candidate you are strongly interested in that long without an update? I highly doubt it. I think a few days is fine, but once the waiting period gets over 10 days, I think #3 is the likely scenario.
So move on (if you haven’t already) and keep interviewing and applying.
