Change a Candidate's Status

The article provides a guide on changing a candidate's status in a hiring process, emphasizing the importance of organization. It outlines various methods for status updates, including using the candidate overview table, candidate profile, and the Candidates tab under Hiring. Additionally, it details the status options available, categorized into active statuses, disqualified statuses, offer letters, and hiring. The article also explains how to create custom candidate statuses and manage them effectively. Users can add, edit, or delete statuses, ensuring a streamlined workflow. Automatic email notifications are sent to collaborators when comments accompany status changes. The guide aims to enhance the candidate management experience within the BambooHR system.

  • Oct 8, 2025
  • Knowledge

Title
Change a Candidate's Status
Article Text
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How do I change a candidate's status?

Purpose: When you have new candidates applying to your job openings daily, it is important to stay organized with where your candidates are in the process. This help guide will teach you how to change a candidate's status to help you stay organized. 

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Table of Contents

Change status

You can change a candidate's status in several ways. One way is to view the candidate overview table and select the preferred status option from the candidate's status drop-down list.

Screenshot of Candidate profile page showing how to change a candidate’s status within their profile using a dropdown menu.

Another way to change a candidate's status is on their candidate profile by selecting the preferred status option from the candidate's status drop-down list. Once you change the status, you can add a comment associated with the change. The status update, along with your comment, will show on the Notes tab under History.

Please note that BambooHR will send an automatic email to collaborators for status changes only when a comment is also added with the status change.

Screenshot of Hiring > Candidates tab illustrating how to quickly update candidate statuses from a list view.

You can quickly change a candidate's status from the Candidates tab under Hiring. Pull down the status drop-down menu and select the appropriate status.

Screenshot of Job Opening setup page showing how disqualifying application questions can automatically update a candidate’s status based on their responses.

If you have set up disqualifying questions, the system will automatically move your candidates to the selected status if they answer the disqualifying question. Please note, for reporting purposes, the system will first put the candidate in the New status and then move them directly to the status you selected.

If you have set up automated emails, once you change the status, the designated email will be sent based on your schedule preferences.

Status options
Screenshot of Candidate status dropdown menu organized into four numbered sections: Active statuses for tracking candidates through the hiring process. Disqualified statuses for removing candidates from consideration. Option to create or send an offer letter. Option to mark a candidate as hired.

The status options for a candidate divide into four sections:

  1. Active Statuses: Choosing one of these options will identify where the candidate is in the hiring process.
  2. Disqualified Statuses: Choosing one of these options will mark the candidate with the respective status filter. The statuses under "Disqualified Statuses" are inactive statuses that will remove the candidate from the active candidate list. You will see these options if you mark a yes/no question as disqualifying in a job opening.
  3. Create Offer Letter: Selecting this option will allow you to send an offer letter to the candidate. If the candidate has already signed an offer letter, you will see the option to Send New Offer here instead.
  4. Hire: Selecting this option will allow you to create an employee profile for the candidate and close the job opening.

If a candidate was already added as an employee in BambooHR, the Hire status under the candidate profile will be grayed out. This prevents duplicate employee profiles from getting created. To remove the candidate from the active candidate list, you can select an inactive candidate status (under Not Hired Because…). For example, you could create a custom inactive status for “Hired, Already in BambooHR.”

Custom candidate statuses
Screenshot showing how to add a custom status by selecting the “Add Status” option on the Candidate Statuses tab in Settings > Hiring.

You can add a custom status option to the status drop-down list by selecting the following commands in order:  Settings > Hiring > Candidate Statuses. Click +Add Status to add one to the preferred section.

Screenshot showing the text entry field for typing in a custom status and a button to save it.

Type in your custom status and click Add.

When customizing your statuses, think of them as a to-do list and put them in an intuitive workflow order. For example, Send Interview Invitation Email and Interview Invitation Sent are our custom status options. We filter the candidate overview table by a status option and use a bulk action to send an interview invitation email (using a template with placeholders that only take one click) to all candidates at that point. Once the email sends, we change the candidate's status to Interview Invitation Sent, using the bulk action option. This action helps us know where everyone is at and the next steps to take. We can also see where candidates get stuck in the process, such as Waiting for Skills Test Response, and make adjustments to improve the candidate's experience.

Screenshot of the Candidate Statuses list demonstrating how existing statuses can be deleted, edited, or reordered within the system.

Edit the Candidate Statuses list by clicking on the trash can icon next to a standard list option to delete it. You can also edit by clicking and dragging a standard list option up or down to change the order in which it appears.

Screenshot of the Candidate Statuses tab in Settings > Hiring showing where to access the option to restore default statuses.

If you delete any standard statuses, you will see the option to add those back by clicking Add Default Status.

Screenshot of a modal window for restoring default statuses, showing a selectable list of statuses to confirm or cancel.

That will open a modal allowing you to add back any standard statuses you have deleted.

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