‘Brutal 4-round job interview, only to get rejected in the end and then told to keep in touch’ — SG jobseeker asks, ‘Is “keep in touch” a genuine heads-up?’

SINGAPORE: After surviving a four-round gauntlet of technical interviews for a coveted tech role, a Singaporean jobseeker was hit with the worst kind of plot twist: a friendly rejection—and the all-too-familiar “keep in touch.”

Sharing on Reddit’s r/askSingapore, the frustrated jobseeker wrote: “I just went through a brutal 4-round interview process for a tech job and just got the rejection call today. The hiring manager was nice about it, said I was great, but they went with another candidate after the peer manager technical round. Then he specifically said I should keep in touch because they expect to have new openings on the team in about six months.”

Their parting phrase, “keep in touch,” sounds hopeful enough, but is it really a real second chance… or just another dressed-up version of “it’s not you, it’s us”?

“Move on…”

Fellow Singaporeans in the forum didn’t sugarcoat the situation. One replied: “Move on. 6 months is too long. You never know when a headcount freeze or layoff may kick in, given the current job market.”

Another shared a glimmer of hope from his own experience: “They gave me the standard ‘we’ll keep you in mind’ response… and a few months later, they actually called me back. I got the job and stayed for 3 years. So yeah, there is a chance. If you’ve gone through 4 rounds and lost out on a technicality, you can bet they’ll keep you in mind.”

One even had a recruiter circle back two years later: “I guess she still remembered me because I really just lost out by a thin margin.”

Still, most agree that whether it’s genuine or not, there’s no point waiting around with crossed fingers. “Whether it’s a genuine heads-up or polite rejection, at this juncture, there’s nothing you can do about it, so might as well continue your efforts elsewhere.”

“Keep in touch…”

While “keep in touch” can mean different things to different hiring managers, here’s the takeaway: Treat it as a compliment, not a contract.

However, you made it to Round 4. That’s no small feat! You were memorable. You just weren’t the one—this time around. So the door’s not fully shut either, as one commenter offered this smart play:

“Three months down the road, if you are still finding and they are still in your strike zone, then you can email the person who told you to keep in touch about any potential openings.”

In job-searching, hope is healthy, but momentum is healthier. Send that thank-you note, keep the connection alive, and then move on like a boss. If they really meant it, they’ll find you somehow, someday.