Letter to the Editor

To the editor,

After reading the article “Thx for the IView! I Wud ♥ to Work 4 U!! ;)”, I felt that I had to respond. Overall, I think that interviewers and employers are too harsh on the young men and women that they are looking to employ. While I do feel that the use of emojis in what is supposed to be a formal email is not the best way to thank an interviewer for the opportunity, it should not dictate whether or not they get the job. It really annoyed me when they mentioned that “Tory Johnson thought she had found the qualified and enthusiastic intern she craved,” only to discard of her because of a thank you email. The real focus should be on the interview itself and how they were able to respond to the questions asked of them, and their face to face communication. That is a true skill that few possess, and it should not be discredited by something as simple as a thank you email. The fact of the matter is that electronic communication is becoming more casual, and is simply an evolution of language that cannot be controlled. Who knows, the use of emojis might become a normal aspect of business emails in the future? But let’s not speculate.

What you must also keep in mind, is that these young adults are mainly texting their friends and family members, meaning that there are fewer instances where a formal tone might be required or favored. By simply telling them that when responding to or sending a business email, to imagine that they are talking to that person face to face, they should be able to adapt. This is not some unsolvable issue that we just have to accept. Now, instead of just talking and complaining about this “issue”, let’s actually do something about it for once.