Informational
Interviewing/Job Shadowing
Informational
Interviewing is a strategy which provides you with a direct means
of collecting information on your prospective career from individuals
who are currently employed in your field. Informational interviewing
is one of the most effective forms of networking.
Job shadowing is a work experience option where students
learn about a job by walking through the workday as a shadow to a
competent worker. The job shadowing work experience is a temporary,
unpaid exposure to the workplace in an occupational area of interest
to the student. Students witness firsthand the work environment,
employability and occupational skills in practice, the value of
professional training and potential career options. Job shadowing is
designed to increase career awareness, help model student behavior
through examples, and reinforce in the student the link between
classroom learning and work requirements. Almost any workplace is a
potential job shadowing site.
How effective is
this strategy? A recent statistic demonstrated that sending 256
"cold" resumes per year would generate the same results as conducting
two informational interviews per week for 12 weeks.
Reasons to conduct
Informational Interviews/Job Shadow:
» Explore careers and
clarify your career goals
» Discover
opportunities that are not advertised
» Expand your
professional network
» Build confidence
for your job interview
»
Access the most up-to-date
career information
» Identify your
professional strengths and weaknesses
Important: You are not
asking for a job. You are collecting information in order to
understand the realities of an occupation.
Steps
to follow for arranging an Informational Interview/Job Shadow
1.
Prepare for the interview/Job Shadow: Research the
field prior to the interview. Explore further in the Career Resources
Library. Based on your research, decide what information you would
like to obtain about the occupation/industry and prepare a list of
questions pertaining to the field.
Topics
for discussion:
»
Basic prerequisites for jobs in
this field
» Certification or
an advanced degree necessary for the job
» Kind of pay range
expected
» Experiences of the
professional which have been invaluable to her/his learning field
» Job titles of the
positions that I would most likely be applying for
2. Identify
the Occupation/Industry you wish to learn about: Assess your
interests, abilities, values, skills and evaluate labor conditions and
trends to identify the best fields to research.
Topics
for discussion:
»
Future trends in this industry
»
Training required for this field
»
Opportunities for advancement
»
Types of training company offers
persons in this field
3. Identify
people to interview/Job Shadow: Start with lists of people
you already know: friends, relatives, fellow students, present or
former co-workers, supervisors, neighbors, etc. Professional
organizations, yellow pages, organizational directories, and public
speakers are also good resources. You may also call an organization
and ask for the name of the person by job title.
Topics
for discussion:
»
Making myself a better candidate
»
The most challenging part of the
job
4. Arrange the
interview: Contact the person to set up that interview by
telephone, identify yourself, your purpose for the interview, and find
out how much time is allotted. A letter followed by a telephone call
or by having someone who knows the person making the appointment for
you is another way for arrangement.
Topics
for discussion:
»
List of references
»
Permission to use the name of
the professional
5. Conducting
the interview/Job Shadow: Dress appropriately, arrive on time,
be polite and professional. Refer to your list of prepared questions;
stay on track, but allow for spontaneous discussion. Be considerate
of the professional's time. Before leaving, ask your contact to
suggest names of additional contacts.
Topics
for discussion:
»
Special advice given a person
entering this field
»
Best and worst aspects of this
job
»
Experiences of the professional
that have been invaluable in this field
»
The path of the professional
that led to this field/job
*Be
sure to phrase the topics of the discussion in your own words.
After
the Informational Interview/Job Shadow:
»
When you arrive home, immediately compose a short thank-you note and
get it in
the mail that same evening.
»
Analyze the information gathered. Adjust your job search, resume and
career
objective if necessary.
» If
there are further references, call the people mentioned, make
appointments with
them, and follow the same plan as above.
Keep
in mind that this process works. The fact is that people are willing
to share their information when you show respect for their time,
interest in their line of work, and appreciation for their help.
Adapted from "Damn Good
Resume"
http://www.damngood.com |
