Rejecting candidates

This article walks you through how and where you can reject candidates in JOIN, the different email options available, and how to undo a rejection if needed.

Rejecting candidates is a key part of the hiring process. It helps you maintain an organised pipeline, ensures transparency with applicants, and enables your team to focus on the most promising candidates. While it’s not always an easy step, JOIN gives you the tools to handle it professionally and efficiently — whether you're rejecting a single candidate or managing bulk rejections.

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Rejecting applications

You can reject candidates from the Applications by:

1. Go to the Applications > Active sub-tab in the sidebar

2. Find the candidate using scroll, filters, or search

   • Use search by clicking the button at the top right

   • Or press Command + F (Mac) or Ctrl + F (Windows) to search

3. Select the checkbox next to the candidate(s)

4. Click Reject from the bottom toolbar. Or, alternatively, you can use the Actions column on the right to reject individual candidates directly. If the Actions column isn't visible, scroll horizontally to the far right of the table.

After rejecting a candidate, you can still view their application. To view all rejected candidates across your jobs, go to the Applications tab in the sidebar and click the Rejected sub-tab. This view displays a complete list of rejected applications, regardless of job. You can use the dropdown menus at the top to filter the list by job or job status, helping you quickly find the candidates you’re looking for.

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Rejecting from job's pipeline

To reject candidate's directly from your job's pipeline:

1. Go to the Jobs > Active tab and select a job

2. This will open the Applications sub-tab

3. Locate the candidate manually or use the search bar in the top-right corner

4. Choose your preferred view:

   • Card view (default): Each candidate is shown as a card by stage. Locate the candidate card and click the Reject icon . Alternatively, select the candidate(s) and use the toolbar at the bottom of the screen to click Reject.

   

   • Table view: Click the settings icon to switch to Table and find the candidate. Scroll to the Actions column and click the Reject icon . Alternatively, select the candidate(s) and use the toolbar at the bottom of the screen to click Reject.

   
5. You can also select the candidate(s) by using the checkbox and click Reject in the bottom toolbar

Use the filters to narrow your candidate list or directly search (Command + F or Ctrl + F) for the candidate you're looking to reject.

After rejecting a candidate, you can still view their application. Use the Active or Rejected toggle at the top to switch between active and rejected applications in your hiring pipeline.

• If you're in card view, you’ll see the candidate card placed in the stage where they were rejected (e.g. Phone Screening, Interview)

• If you're in table view, the Stage column indicates the stage they were in when rejected

This makes it easy to understand where in the process the candidate exited.

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Rejecting from candidate's profile

You can also reject a candidate directly from their candidate profile:

1. Click a candidate's name to open their profile

2. In the right-most navigation panel, find the job listing that you want to reject the candidate for

3. Click the Reject icon next to the job and confirm the rejection

For candidates that have applications for multiple jobs, rejection is job-specific and does not affect their status on other applications.

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Review and customise rejection

When rejecting a candidate, JOIN provides flexibility in how the rejection is communicated. You can either use a pre-set email template, write a custom message, or decide to not notify the candidate.

1. Reject with a template

When you select one or more candidates and click Reject from the toolbar at the bottom of the screen (in card or table view):

• Use the dropdown menu to select an email template from your saved rejection templates

• Hover over the template name to preview its content

• Choose a sender address from the available options

• Click Send & reject to notify the candidate(s), or select Reject without notification if you don’t want to send an email

You cannot edit the email content when using this method. All selected candidates will receive the same message based on the chosen template.

2. Reject with a customised message

When you click the Reject button for a specific candidate (from their profile, card, or row in the table):

• The rejection email window opens in the lower-right corner

• You can fully edit the subject and message content

• Use the Templates button if you'd like to start from a pre-saved template

• Choose how and when to send the message:

  • Send immediately using Send & reject

  • Schedule it using the Send later option (e.g. tomorrow morning, in 3 hours)

  • Set a custom date and time if needed

• Alternatively, choose Reject without notification if you don’t want to send an email

Editing the message here only affects this specific email being sent to a candidate. Your saved templates remain unchanged.

To learn more about how to customise, edit, or add new rejection templates, read more here.

You can change the sender address while sending the rejection email. By default, your recruiter email is used (e.g. [email protected]). You can also select [email protected], but replies to this address will not be monitored.

3. Reject without notifying the candidate

To change a candidate’s status without sending them an email, select Reject without notification.

We recommend informing candidates about their status whenever possible. Use this option only if you have already notified them through other means.

Rejection emails are sent immediately after clicking Send & reject. Automated rejections (e.g. from knockout questions) are processed separately and sent next morning.

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Bulk rejection

To reject multiple candidates at once:

1. Tick the checkboxes next to the candidates

2. Click Reject in the bottom toolbar

3. Choose an email template, or select Reject without notification

4. Click Send & reject

You can’t customise emails individually in bulk mode. The chosen rejection template or rejection method applies to all selected candidates.

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Undoing a rejection

If you’ve rejected a candidate by mistake, you can easily reverse the action using the Undo rejection button []. This returns the candidate to the stage they were in your hiring pipeline before being rejected.

You can undo a rejection from the following views:

• Card view: Click the Undo rejection icon directly on the candidate’s card. Alternatively, switch to the Rejected view using the toggle at the top to find and restore the candidate.

• Table view: Go to the Applications tab and open the Rejected sub-tab. Locate the candidate and click the arrow icon in the Actions column to undo.

• Confirmation toast: Immediately after rejecting a candidate, a confirmation message appears at the bottom of the screen. Click Undo changes to reverse the action quickly.

No email or notification is sent when you undo a rejection. The candidate is simply moved back to the stage they were last in within your hiring pipeline.