37 About Informational Interviews

A great way to job prospect and begin building connections at companies you would like to work for is by conducting informational interviews. Informational interviews give you the opportunity to sit down with a business professional from a company you would like to work for and ask them questions to gain insight into the company and your future profession. The goals are to build a connection with a professional in your field, to learn more about a company you are interested in working for, and to learn more about your field. Informational interviews can provide the opportunity to create a valuable lifetime connection with someone who can serve as a mentor and guide you throughout your career; or the person you interview could put you in touch with others in the industry who can help you on your career path and even provide job prospects. Sometimes the conversations you have during an informational interview can lead to opportunities for internships and even full-time employment.

A few years ago, I was talking in class about the opportunities that can come from conducting informational interviews. I encouraged students to explore the companies they would like to work for rather than the companies that just happen to be hiring when they graduate. One especially ambitious student took my advice to heart and set a goal to conduct five informational interviews during the summer before her senior year.

When she came back to class the following fall, she was so excited to share her journey and experience with me. She told me she had started by identifying local companies she would like to work for. Next, she called the companies and politely explained that she would be graduating soon and that she had a class assignment to speak with a professional in her field. She asked if they would be able to put her in touch with someone that would be willing to meet with her for fifteen to thirty minutes. She was received warmly and quickly had her five interviews scheduled.

During her interviews she learned about her target companies, trends in her industry, what employers are looking for, and more. She was even offered two full-time jobs after graduation. However, she told me that the most valuable part of the experience was something she had not expected.

After meeting with one company representative, she was sure that she did not want to work for this company. He took her on a tour of the facility, introduced her to his team, and she just don’t feel like the company and the position were a fit for her. She felt that the company’s goals did not align with her personal nor her professional goals. The company culture she observed during the tour wasn’t something she was excited to become a part of. She was so glad to find this out before she may have ended up working for this company.  Interview processes are long and arduous, they take a lot of time, and what a shame it would have been for her to go through the process only to end up at a company she quickly would realize she didn’t want to work for, only to have to start the entire process all over again.