Send a thank-you email within 24 hours of an internship interview, to each person who interviewed you. Keep it to four or five sentences: thank them, mention one specific thing you discussed, say why it makes you want the role, and offer to send anything else. Use a plain subject line. If you hear nothing by their decision date, follow up once.
The interview is over and you're replaying every answer in your head. There's one thing left you can still control: the thank-you email. It takes ten minutes, most of it is a template, and it's the last thing the interviewer reads from you before they decide.
A thank-you email won't rescue a bad interview, and skipping one rarely sinks a good one. But when two candidates are close, the one who sent a short, specific note stays in the interviewer's mind. It's also your chance to add the thing you forgot to say.
When to send it
Within 24 hours. The same afternoon or evening is ideal, while the conversation is still fresh for both of you. If you interviewed on a Friday, Friday evening or Monday morning both work.
Don't send it from the parking lot five minutes after you leave. It reads as pre-written, and you lose the chance to mention something specific.
Who to send it to
Everyone who interviewed you, separately. If three people were on the panel, send three emails, each one mentioning something that person said or asked. Interviewers compare notes, and three copies of the same paragraph look like a mail merge.
No email address for someone? Send your note to the recruiter or coordinator who set up the interview and ask them to pass on your thanks. Don't guess at addresses.
What to put in it
Four or five sentences is enough. In order:
- Thank them for their time, using the role's name.
- One specific detail from the conversation: a project they described, a question they asked, a problem the team is working on.
- Why it makes you want the role more, tied to that detail.
- Anything you forgot, in one sentence. Optional, but this is where a thank-you email earns its keep.
- A short close: you're happy to send anything else they need.
Subject line: keep it plain so it's easy to find later. "Thank you, Marketing Intern interview" works. So does replying in the thread where they scheduled the interview.
Template 1: the standard thank-you
Subject: Thank you, [Role] interview
Hi [Name],
Thank you for taking the time to talk with me today about the [Role] internship. I really enjoyed hearing about [specific project or detail they mentioned]. It made me even more excited about the chance to [what you'd do or learn in the role].
Please let me know if there's anything else I can send you. I look forward to hearing about next steps.
Best, [Your name] [Phone] · [LinkedIn or portfolio link]
Template 2: the "one thing I forgot to say"
Use this when you walked out thinking of a better answer, or of an example you never got to.
Subject: Thank you, [Role] interview
Hi [Name],
Thanks again for the conversation today. I appreciated your question about [question they asked], and I wanted to add one thing I didn't mention: [one or two sentences, e.g. a class project, club role or part-time job that fits].
The way your team approaches [detail from the interview] is exactly the kind of work I want to learn this summer. Happy to send anything else that would help.
Best, [Your name]
Keep the addition to one or two sentences. It's a footnote, not a second interview.
Template 3: for a panel or a video call
Subject: Thank you, [Role] interview
Hi [Name],
Thank you for joining my interview for the [Role] internship today. Your point about [something this person specifically said] stuck with me, especially [why it stood out].
I'd love to bring [a skill or interest that fits] to the team. Please don't hesitate to reach out if you need anything else from me.
Best, [Your name]
Change the middle sentence for each person on the panel. That one line is what makes it personal.
Mistakes to skip
- Writing a cover letter. If it scrolls, it's too long.
- Re-pitching yourself. One line on why you fit is plenty. They already have your résumé.
- Asking whether you got it. "When will I hear back?" belongs in the interview itself, not in the thank-you.
- Typos in their name or the company's. Read it once out loud before you hit send.
- Sending it as a LinkedIn message only. Email is the safer default. A LinkedIn connection request afterward is fine as an extra.
- Handwritten notes as the only thank-you. They're a nice touch for an in-person interview, but they arrive days later. Send the email first.
If you hear nothing: the follow-up
Near the end of the interview, try to ask when they expect to make a decision (it's one of the best questions to ask in an internship interview). Then:
- Wait until that date passes, plus two or three business days.
- If they didn't give a date, wait about a week after your thank-you email.
- Send one short follow-up in the same thread:
Hi [Name], I wanted to check in on the [Role] internship. I'm still very interested and would be glad to share anything else that would help. Thanks again for your time.
If there's still no answer a week or so later, one final note is fine. After that, stop. Silence after an interview is frustrating, and it usually says more about a busy hiring team than about you (here's why companies go quiet). Keep applying elsewhere while you wait.
The short version
Send a thank-you email within 24 hours to each person who interviewed you. Four or five sentences: thanks, one specific detail, why it makes you want the role, and an offer to send anything else. Plain subject line. If you hear nothing by their date, follow up once or twice, then move on.
Keep the next interview coming
UTern Birdee finds live internships that fit what you've actually done and gets each application ready, so you have more interviews to write thank-you notes for. You review each one and press submit yourself. It's free. Find internships that fit you.