Informational Interviewing

Informational interviewing is exactly what it sounds like — interviewing designed to yield the information you need to choose a career path, learn how to break in, and practice the interviewing process. It’s a focused conversation with someone in your career field who can provide you with key information you need to launch your job search, often including a critique of your resume. One of the most positive things students get from conducting informational interviews with people in the fields they are interested in is seeing what the career is like from someone actually doing the job, not just researching and reading about it. Informational interviews have many other benefits. You can learn about the realities of the work world and what to expect. You may discover opportunities that are available in a given field. Your dream career can be affirmed or you may find it to be wrong for you. If you are unsure about which career path to follow, you can obtain the information you need to figure out what you want to do. Also, informational interviews can better prepare you to ask questions when you are interviewed for a position. Working people are usually delighted to serve as informational interview subjects. People love to talk about themselves, and most truly want to help. Research tells us that most jobs are landed through informal channels like this, so do your research and be ready to ask questions.