How to keep in touch with an employer who would hire you if it weren’t for their hiring freeze

Yes, but the check-in should feel useful, not needy. Every two to three weeks is usually fine unless the recruiter gave a specific timeline.

The trick is to send a tiny, low-pressure note with one new piece of value: a recent project, a relevant win, a portfolio update, or a quick signal that you’re still interested. Not “Any updates????” That’s inbox glitter. Annoying and impossible to clean up.

A better version is: “Just wanted to stay on your radar as hiring picks back up. Since we last spoke, I finished a small project on X that felt relevant to the role. Still very interested whenever the team reopens the process.”

That’s it. Friendly, brief, useful. The goal is to look organized and enthusiastic, not like you’re refreshing your email with oven mitts on.

I’d hold off on periodic check-ins and use that window to do something more concrete first.

A summer hiring pause usually means there’s unresolved budget pressure behind the role. The person who gets hired will probably need to justify their cost faster than usual. I’d spend July and August building something small that speaks directly to the team’s problems.

Read their recent blog posts, earnings calls if public, or product updates. Write a short perspective on a challenge they’re clearly facing and send it once, mid-August, with a line like: “Been thinking about this since we spoke. Wanted to share while your team plans for fall.”

One well-timed message with substance carries more weight than three polite “just checking in” emails. If you hear nothing after that single send, you have your answer without having burned any goodwill.

There is nothing wrong with staying connected, however, to prevent annoyance, the best thing to do is to ask permission of the recruiter before reaching out. If a recruiter indicates there will be a summer pause, send a thank you message right away and inquire about when you may reach back out. A good example would be to say something such as “Is it okay for me to check back in with you toward the end of August as you begin planning for fall?” Once they indicate that it is fine to check back in — you now have an open invitation to follow up. At the end of August, your email could look like this: “I wanted to check in with you as we previously spoke of in July, I was wondering if your organization has begun to restart their interview process.” Since you are merely checking in based upon a timeline that you and the recruiter both agreed to prior to sending the second message — there is no reason why either party should feel awkward. Your professionalism and ability to follow through will also be demonstrated.

A summer hiring pause is usually real, and budgets do tend to reopen around September. I’d mark my calendar for a single follow-up about six weeks after that initial conversation and send something brief that connects to the role or the company’s recent news. Maybe they announced a product launch or posted something on LinkedIn worth commenting on. Tying your check-in to their world gives you a concrete reason to write.

I’d cap it at two unanswered follow-ups over a three-month window. If the recruiter responds even once with encouragement, that’s your signal to stay warm with one more touch after another few weeks. If they go silent twice, your energy belongs elsewhere.

I run my own hiring cycles, and candidates who resurface with something relevant to the role or the company stick in my memory. A check-in that references a specific thing we discussed or something the company shipped recently is easy for me to respond to, and easy for me to remember when headcount opens back up.

If you are going to follow up on it, you do not have to be as aggressive when keeping yourself on the recruiter’s radar. Immediately after the recruiter indicates there is a summer break, send a polite connection invitation via LinkedIn. Include a brief thank you for the time they took. For the rest of the summer, you will not send a single email to this person. You will instead connect by periodically engaging with their posts or commenting on a relevant update regarding your industry. At the beginning of September, you will send a formal email directly to inquire about the current state of your job application.

The reason that the above-mentioned “mixed” strategy allows you to keep a relaxed feeling towards the recruiter while keeping your face/name visible to them is due to the fact that by the time you send your last follow-up email, you will not feel like a complete unknown or disruption to their work. Therefore, they will most likely answer your question favorably.