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[1st Time]

Just got a phone interview.
I am writing the thank you letter now and plan to send via email. Not sure what's a good subject for the mail other than simple "Thank you".
Any suggestions?

[B.F.]

My suggestion would be for you to read the posts on this site debating thank you letters before you send one.

As far as the email subject, Thank You seems fine to me.

[This autumn on the T-T]

Don't thank them for the phone interview. They haven't given you anything special, they are just trying to weed people out at this point. Thanking them now would make you seem like a desperate greenhorn when you want to come across as a confident professional.

The fact that they are asking for a phone interview is good news---you have made it to the top 5-15 candidates for the job. No mean feat in this market. So savor the fact that you were chosen---without getting your hopes too high---and take the time you would have used to thank them to prepare like crazy for this phone interview.

The time to thank them is after the campus interview, if you get one. A short e-mail to the chair, thanking him or her for the chance to visit their campus and mentioning things that impressed you about the dept./school, will suffice. And ask that your sentiments be conveyed to the other members of the search committee.

[anon]

I have to disagree (and there is a long long discussion on an earlier thread as previously pointed out).  Especially if you're a strong candidate, you should be thanking both at phone/conference interviews and at the campus interview so that they know you're still interested.  The only reason I got a couple of my flyouts after the conference interviews this year is because I sent a thank you note reiterating my interest-- otherwise the schools thought I was out of reach.  

I'm thinking the disagreement comes from whether you're in a field where everyone is desperate to get a job vs being in a field where you can seem "unattainable" (as discussed in another previous thread).  There may also be regional differences.  So I'm not sure a blanket do or don't send thank you emails is appropriate for everyone.

[Another Boring Anon]

Why is the contact framed as "thanking" them if this makes you resentful?  Why not contact them in the attitude of "I enjoyed speaking to you" or "It was great to have the chance to talk to you"--if nothing else, this is a networking opportunity--and use the chance to regroup and mention anything that slipped your mind during the interview itself or any additional things you think they might be interested in seeing (a syllabus for a course you mentioned during the phone interview, etc.).

[Chloe]

I second Another Boring Anon. Saying "I enjoyed speaking with you" and adding something is never wrong. It is excellent etiquette everwhere, and makes you seem kind, memorable, and worth knowing.

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