How to give feedback on an interview candidate, with examples

Taking detailed notes during interviews isn’t a good habit; it’s a requirement for any hiring team. 

Whether you’re a recruiter or a hiring manager, it’s essential to keep track of why a candidate is or isn’t a good fit for the job to support a fair hiring process.

Plus, candidates might ask for feedback on the interview, and it’s easier to relay constructive criticism or areas for improvement if you have thorough documentation to fall back on.

Here’s how to write good interview feedback, with some feedback examples, to help you better evaluate candidates.

What is interview feedback?

Interview feedback describes the observations you make when evaluating a candidate, often on key points like performance, fit, and hiring recommendation. Feedback refers to both internal assessments and any commentary you choose to relay directly to a candidate. 

Thoroughly documenting interview feedback has several benefits, regardless of whether you’ll share it with candidates, like:

• Better hiring decisions: If you have thorough notes about how a candidate interviewed, you can more clearly compare applicants, which prevents bias and promotes direct evidence for hiring decisions.
• It’s easier to share with candidates: Applicants—successful or not—may request feedback on the interview process. Having clear but concise notes makes it easier to give succinct, constructive feedback to those who ask. 
• Thorough documentation: Detailed hiring records can resolve future questions, like why you passed on a candidate or what led to a hire recommendation. 

Common interview feedback mistakes

Taking thorough notes about the interview process presents the following challenges.

• Vague content: Switching focus between listening to a candidate and taking notes can lead to vague comments you can’t decipher later. Using an AI notetaker is a great way to capture all of the data from an interview without taking a single manual note.
• Unprofessional notes: Notes that don’t relate to what a candidate said—for example, personal opinions about the person or their responses—aren’t useful. These notes reflect your subjective perspective instead of evidence that enables a hiring manager to make an informed decision.
• Inconsistency: Taking rigorous notes about some candidates and using short bullet points for others will lead to inconsistent and potentially unfair hiring decisions. 
• Negativity: Although some applicants might be weaker than others, feedback should be actionable and professional without being harsh or unhelpful. Honest but professional feedback is key. 

How to write structured candidate feedback

Every candidate’s profile should contain clear notes, with key points tying back to the job description and hiring criteria. Follow these steps to make sure feedback is structured and consistent: 

• Structure feedback around strengths: Avoid overtly negative feedback by focusing on where the candidate was a strong fit. For example, they might have incredible project management skills that are worth highlighting or demonstrate a strong understanding of the company values.
• Frame weaknesses as areas for improvement: Instead of stating that a candidate lacked a skill set, suggest areas where they would benefit from greater development. Someone with little experience with people management might not be the best fit for a leadership role. Note that an increased demonstration of leadership ability would help them develop a foundation for those people management skills in the future.
• Document immediately after interviews: Don’t wait to record your thoughts, as you might forget details or misremember the candidate’s responses to questions. Set aside time to write your interview feedback as soon as the meeting ends. If using an AI notetaker, this tool will automate information capture during the interview and often make a summary after the fact. All you’ll have to do is review the accuracy of the notes.
• Use the same criteria for each candidate: Create a thorough guide of what you’re looking for from a successful candidate, from cultural fit to must-have experience. This guide will enable you to ensure every candidate is compared to the same benchmarks, which promotes an equitable hiring practice. 
• Tie each comment to an observation: Your notes should be specific and grounded in what a candidate said. Using a notetaker during the interview or recording the meeting gives you a resource to use after the fact when tying commentary back to specific moments in the conversation.

Interview feedback examples

In theory, great feedback is fair and detailed, but what does it look like in practice? While feedback may vary by the type of interview (such as a phone call versus an on-site assessment), the basic guidance remains the same. 

Interview feedback examples by outcome

Here are some examples of how to write feedback for a candidate based on the outcome of the interview. 

A positive, advance recommendation

“[Candidate] was clearly prepared for the interview, with extensive background knowledge of the company and thoughtful questions about the role. They answered interview questions with great depth, drawing on relevant experience from their time at [company]. When responding to situational questions, they did an excellent job of listening actively before responding thoroughly to the hypothetical without getting off track. Above all, [candidate] demonstrated a strong background in [field], and will be an excellent fit for the role.” 

A strong candidate not selected

“Although [candidate] wasn’t selected for the position, they were a strong candidate. Having spent years as a [job title/position] at [company name], they had extensive technical knowledge that would’ve been a great asset to the team. Plus, they were a strong fit for our team culture. We were particularly impressed by the previous projects they’ve led. However, [candidate] lacked experience managing a team of engineers, which is crucial to the position. As a result, we’ve chosen not to move forward.”

A soft rejection

“We felt that [candidate] has a promising career path in [field] due to their enthusiasm and early experience in the field. Unfortunately, while impressed, we chose to move forward with other candidates who had greater experience in the industry and were a better match for the senior profile required for this role. [Candidate] should continue to develop their skills and find opportunities to show greater leadership in future positions.”

A clear no-hire  

“We’d like to thank [candidate] for taking the time to meet with us, but we won’t be proceeding with their application. [Candidate] had some promising experience but struggled to successfully articulate how that experience made them a strong fit for the role and the employer brand. We felt that more time spent preparing for future interviews would help [candidate] showcase their strengths and improve their job search.” 

Interview feedback examples by skill area

The skill-specific examples below are particularly relevant for hiring managers tailoring answers to strong candidates being rejected.

Core performance 

“[Candidate’s] writing sample showed exceptional talent in [technical skill]. Although there were some minor grammatical errors, the bulk of the sample showed strength. We’d recommend more thorough proofreading on future assessments for even better demonstrations of [technical skill].”  

Soft skills

“Throughout the interview, [candidate] spoke with incredible confidence about their experience navigating conflict with team members. This showcased teamwork, leadership, conflict resolution skills, and composure, all in one example.”

Keep your hiring funnel full with Juicebox

Job descriptions and set interview questions are crucial to creating a fair hiring process. Add a structured feedback process on top, and you can evaluate every candidate against the same criteria instead of gut instinct.

But feedback is a middle-to-bottom-of-the-funnel concern. First, you need to engage great-fit candidates for your open role, and that depends on a healthy pipeline and outreach sequence. 

That’s where Juicebox comes in. An AI-native people search platform, Juicebox uses natural language searches to surface candidates from over 30 data sources and automates messaging to keep potential matches engaged. Juicebox also syncs with over 50 commonly used tools, like ATSs and CRMs, to send qualified candidates into the same place you perform the rest of your hiring work, like writing and storing feedback.

Start a free Juicebox search and keep your hiring funnel full.

FAQs

How do you write feedback on an interview candidate?

Start by connecting the candidate’s interview performance to the job description and how their responses reflected the ability to perform that job. Tie your insights to specific comments they make in responses. See our positive feedback examples above, and tailor your messages from there.

Should you give feedback to rejected candidates?

Providing feedback to rejected candidates is the company’s call. Some organizations have a policy of only sharing brief notes with rejected candidates or sharing this information in special cases (i.e., with applicants who were nearly hired). 

When giving feedback to rejected candidates, keep the message brief and job-relevant, with a focus on areas for improvement and constructive feedback. Refer to the examples of feedback we gave above if you’re unsure what to say. 

What should you avoid in interview feedback?

Avoid interview feedback that is vague, contains personal opinions or subjective observations, could be interpreted as biased or discriminatory, or isn’t relevant to the job description. All notes and messaging should be concrete, respectful, and based on evidence from the interview and job requirements. 

How do I keep enough qualified candidates reaching the interview stage?

Keeping qualified candidates at the interview stage requires a strong pipeline, which is one of the biggest challenges facing recruiters. Juicebox can help. With over 800 million profiles to search, Juicebox can surface and contact relevant candidates, so you always have applicants at the interview stage.

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