Best practice for following up on application status

Question

If you've secured an interview invite from one MBB firm and haven't heard back from the other two, is it alright to follow up and mention you've got an interview with firm X and was just hoping to get some visibility on application status to plan your interview schedule ahead. Would mentioning firm X's invite reflect poorly or be advantageous? What's the best way to phrase this?

Answer 1

Hi there,

I'm sorry but just an interview invite from another firm means nothing here and cannot be leveraged.

I highly recommend you do not mention this other interview in any followup - it just looks bad. You can only really do so if you an offer from another firm.

That said, if it has been 3-4 weeks since you applied, you can certainly email and (politely) check to see if they have any update.

Answer 2

You don't have much leverage until you progress to advanced stages with a particular firm or have an offer in hand. My advice will be to be patient and work through the process. Otherwise you risk coming off as desperate.

Its okay to nudge politely if you havent heard back in 2-4 weeks to check status, but keep out the fact that you have secured 1st round interview elsewhere- its too early in the process.

Answer 3

Hi there,

I agree with Adi and Ian, I would not mention you have been invited – it won’t provide enough validation.

On the other hand, if you get an offer from that firm, you can definitely follow up and the others will probably accelerate the process if they find your profile interesting.

One month after the application you can also follow up with the firms who haven’t replied (ideally via the person referring you if present).

Best,

Francesco