May 7, 2007

Ernie English
1234 Writing Lab Lane
Write City, IN 12345

Dear Mr. English:

The purpose of this letter is to reject a job offer presented to you by a company. It is important to be polite, while at the same time firmly rejecting the offer. In the opening paragraph, thank the employer for the offer. Convey that although you appreciated the offer, you are unable to accept the position. You may also wish to use an indirect approach, by stating the reasons for your refusal before rejecting the offer.

You should then give the employer the reasons for your refusal. The rejection of an offer is somewhat unimportant to the applicant, but it is extremely important to the employer. It allows the company to formally move on to the next applicant. More importantly, it tells the employer how to make the offer more appealing for the next applicant. After all, how can they be expected to fix a problem if they don’t know what it is? After you have stated your reasons for rejecting their offer, politely refuse the offer (if you haven’t already done so).

End your letter with a sense of goodwill. This is important because you may wish to apply for a position with the company at a later date. Also, be sure to thank them for the time they invested while working with you.

Sincerely,

Lucy Letter
123 Winner’s Road
New Employee Town, PA 12345