Whether it is the initial application or the interview itself, when you put your best self forward, you feel confident others will recognize that. So what is with the wait from the employer getting back to you?

Did you not do as well as you thought? Are they ghosting your application?

Or is there some perfectly logical alternative for why they are taking so long to respond?

As the site Ivy Exec explains, having to be patient might have some understandable reasons.

You Were an Early Candidate

Maybe the employer mentioned to you in the interview that you were one of the first candidates they are speaking to. That might make you feel good, assuming that means being one of the first to sell yourself improves your chances.

But the company might also be intent on interviewing everyone from their list regardless just to see what’s out there. In this case, being early could mean you will wait a while.

The Interview Process Has Gotten Longer

Employers have many more tools to gain information about you than they used to. There are still references and background checks, but candidates might also be asked to do online skill assessments and personality tests, and employers can look up your online presence. It allows them to be more thorough but also makes things take longer.

Their Timeline Wasn’t Accurate

Maybe they told you they would get back to you in two weeks, and that has come and gone. That doesn’t necessarily mean anything negative. Life intervenes. Maybe the hiring manager was sick or had a family emergency. Employers are people, too, and can have things come up that delay their timelines.

They Want the Perfect Candidate

Online applications now mean that so many more people apply to jobs than they used to. Employers know this, and many feel confident that they can be picky as a result. People who might have once been regarded as perfectly good candidates can now be placed in the maybe pile as they wait and see if someone more outstanding is still out there.

The big takeaway is that there are plenty of reasons the response time might be taking longer than you expected. Don’t lose sleep over it; just keep applying to other places so you can hopefully have multiple good offers to consider.

Still wondering if you should hold onto hope for that job position. Check out some more explanations for the delay in response in the article from Ivy Exec here.

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