Information Interview

Information Interview

The lesson will focus on preparing for the second paper, where you will interview someone who is doing the kind of work you hope to do. I realize that at this point,
you are probably still working on the first paper and may be wondering why I’m already introducing the second one. I want you to start thinking about this assignment
because locating someone to interview may take some time. While the paper won’t be due until July 13, thinking about who you can interview is something you should
start now.
Interviewing someone to find out the nuts and bolts of their profession is called an information interview. Chapter 8 of the Bolles book discusses these, and you
should read that chapter. Information interviews are a wonderful way of finding out both the positive and negatives of a career and an opportunity for you to find out
what employers are looking for before the tables are turned and they are interviewing you. Questions such as what degrees and special skills employers in this field
look for, what the typical daily routine is like, what the future outlook for this career is, are all appropriate questions. While it is ok to ask what the salary
range or entry-level salary for this type of job is, do not ask the person you are interviewing what his or her specific salary is. Also, do not ask questions that
relate to this specific company, such as what their benefit package is like. You are looking for information about the career, not this specific place of employment.
I want each of you to contribute one appropriate question that can be asked. Post your question under the forum “interview questions” no later than midnight, June 19.

This is the questions I put in my discussion board, you will have an idea about what I want to talk in this paper.
What makes you more motivated in your job and what are the skills you have as a professional that make you a successful person and what do you think you need to
develop to make you even more satisfied in your workplace and is that something can push you up to achieve the most important goals in your career?

Finding someone to interview may be the biggest challenge, but may not be as difficult as you expect. People generally like talking about themselves and are interested
in helping young people entering their field. You may know someone from friends or family. That’s fine, but keep in mind that talking to someone who don’t already
know may give you a broader perspective. Consider asking them to recommend someone instead. It is fine to call companies who hire in your field and ask if someone
would have time for an information interview. Obviously, ask for an appointment, not information on the spot. If you explain that you are doing this for a class
assignment, they may be especially sympathetic. If they say no, thank them for their time and ask a different company. Remain professional and polite. These could
be people you will end up working with some day. I’ve had students who have been invited in to shadow someone for a full day. That’s a great opportunity. Finally,
look over the bios your classmates posted last week. There may be someone in the class who has a useful contact.
For this assignment, you can conduct the interview in person, via Skype or telephone, or through an e-mail, in that order of preference. Being there in person has some
huge advantages. E-mail is the least effective. You can’t develop rapport or ask follow-up questions and since your subject has to type, responses probably won’t be
as long. Do not wait until the last minute to do this. People often have to cancel and reschedule.
If you meet in person, dress professionally and meet in a safe location. Their place of employment is obviously the best. It’s a way for you to see the job rather
than just hear about it. It also means other people will be around. If you meet outside their job location, choose a coffee house or some other public place.
Like the first paper, you will need to cite information. The works cited listing for an interview source is example 80 on page 194 in the handbook. Use the first
example. It is the subject’s last name, then first name followed by Personal Interview and the date. Note that dates in MLA have the day first, then the month and
year. If this is a Skype or telephone or e-mail interview, put that instead.
The in-text citations are very easy. Since interviews don’t have page numbers, the person’s last name, either in the text or in parentheses, is the citation. If you
use their name to refer to what they said, either in a direct quote or in a paraphrase directly in the paper, as will be the natural thing to do, you may not have any
parentheses in this one. Do the best you can with documentation. These first two papers are a way of letting me see what you are and aren’t doing correctly, and what
I need to explain perhaps more clearly, before you write the main paper for the course.
You should explain who your source is and what his or her credentials are in the paper. After the first time they are mentioned, when you will give their full name,
use their last name only. This may seem strange if you are interviewing a friend of family member, but still remember to do it.
Your paper should not be written as a transcription of the interview. In other words, don’t just list the questions and their responses. Write this as a regular
paper, with a strong intro and conclusion. In fact, as much as possible try to avoid putting your questions into the paper and just focus on the responses you receive.
Writing something like when I asked so and so this, he said this and when I asked him this he said this, etc, etc, etc, gets very boring to read. Journalists ask
questions all the time, but rarely include them in their stories. Take a look at some newspaper articles if you want to see how this is done. You also don’t have to
report information in the order that the questions were asked. Writing from an interview is like any other source. If using a book, you don’t say, first I opened the
book and started on page 1. You just pull out interesting information and present it in a way that suits your paper.
When using quotations in your paper, make sure you always include a transition. If you do not have transitions, and just stick the quote in the middle of the paper, I
will deduct points. For example, notice the difference between these two short paragraphs:
Nursing requires a tremendous amount of dedication. “I often have to work twelve-hour shifts multiple days in a row” (Jones).
Nursing requires a tremendous amount of dedication. Jones commented, “I often have to work twelve-hour shifts multiple days in a row.”
Both are cited correctly for an interview source, but the second one as a transition leading into the quote. You can also use a complete sentence followed by a colon
to introduce a quote. This is a nice way of actually putting the quote in some kind of context:
Nursing requires a tremendous amount of dedication. Jones described some of the career’s challenges: “I often have to work twelve-hour shifts multiple days in a row.”
If you use a colon to introduce a quote, make sure it follows a complete sentence.
Here is a copy of the formal assignment:
Assignment #2 Information Interview
For this assignment you should interview someone who is actually working in the field you are interested in, and then write a paper based on the responses you receive.
The paper should not be written in question and answer style and avoid putting your questions into the paper, as in “When I asked so-and-so this, she said this.”
Instead, you should focus on the responses you receive as though the information has come from a written source. Your paper should include at least three direct
quotes and should include MLA documentation. The length should be about 750 words.

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