The basic project is: Conduct an Informational Interview and submit a brief write-up on it, meeting all of the specifications in this HW description.
Note that an informational interview is not the same thing as a mock interview or practice interview. A mock interview or practice interview involves somebody (not you) playing the role of an interviewer, and they interview you as if you are applying for a job with their company.
In an informational interview, you interview a working person about THEIR career (Marketing). Your job is to gather insights from them about their career, about their industry, about the topic of “career” in general, etc. An informational interview is NOT a simulation of a job interview.
For an informational interview, the ideal interviewee would be somebody who is pursuing a career similar to what you want to pursue, but is 3 to 10 years ahead of you on their career (Marketing) path. It’s okay if the person you interview does not meet those criteria; I just want you to know what would be ideal.
Your write-up should be a bullet-pointed or numbered list, not a paper with paragraphs.
Include the following information in your write-up:
● Name of the Interviewee
● Their educational background. If they attended college, name of college, degree/s, etc., including any grad degrees if applicable. Example: “B.S. in Accounting from DePaul University.”
● Their Job Title and Employer
● Any other info you’d like to include about their past career
● Day of the Week, Date, Time, and exact Location (or Internet platform, such as Zoom) of Appointment
● Three to seven content items: These could include topics discussed, decisions agreed upon, insights gained, action items arising from the meeting, your thank-you note (required), etc.
After your interview, send the person a thank-you e-mail or text, and include the exact language of the thank-you note that you sent to the person after the Informational Interview, as one of the 3 to 7 content items.
Note that you do not need to provide me with a list of questions you asked, and the person’s responses. I just want to see a few insights and/or interesting things you gained from the conversation.
Here are three articles that may be helpful as you prep for this Informational Interview assignment. (If a particular link doesn’t work, just search on Google for the article.)
Five Minutes to a Better Job Search in 2014, by Steve Dalton
How to Prepare for an Informational Interview, at Indeed.com
Informational Interview Questions at Indeed.com
Tip: Do not record the informational interview! Instead, take good notes during it. If you absolutely want/need to record it, ask the person’s permission, and understand that many people will probably say no to such a request.
