Recently, a candidate who arrived way too early to an interview, proudly told me that he always arrives 30 minutes early to every interview. He thought that he was being very responsible and ‘doing the right thing’.

Arriving Late or Too Early

It is clear why you should not be late to any interview. Do your best to plan in advance when to leave home/work to ensure you arrive on time. If you are running late, call or email the person you are meeting with, or the person who organized the interview, and let them know when you expect to arrive.

Arriving up to 10 minutes early to an interview is fine, but more than that makes the hiring team uncomfortable. They think that they need to entertain you. They feel rushed to finish whatever they were doing beforehand to attend to you. If you are meeting with more than 1 person, or multiple people one after the other, your early arrival, and the attempt to accommodate it, may affect multiple calendars.

It is not how you want to start your interview. You do not want to be the element that just added stress to the interviewer’s day.

My advice:

Arrive at the interview site 15 minutes early. Wait in your car or outside lobby/coffee shop. Take your time to relax and compose yourself before you go in. Walk in to the interview office 5 minutes before the scheduled time.

Good luck!