The Power of an Informational Interview
Informational interviews are a powerful way to move in your career and expand your professional network. They can help you figure out the next step(s) in your career if you don’t have a specific idea of where you want to go next (and honestly, even if you do). Informational interviews help you gain insight from someone on a different career path from you, or someone a few steps ahead of you in your chosen career. If done strategically, they can also be a way to expand your network.
What is an informational interview?
An informational interview is just what it sounds like: you interview someone to get information about their current job, or career path, industry, or company. It could be someone that’s only two steps of you in their career, or someone who is 13 steps ahead of you in their career. Informational interviews are a way to interview someone to learn more about their job and professional experience, especially the things that you can’t find on Google. They should be relatively short (15-30 minutes), and you should approach them professionally, since this person is being generous with their time and experience.
Why should I do an informational interview?
To get an understanding of what it takes to move into a particular industry.
To see the possibilities ahead for how you can use your degree, training, and/or interests.
To get insight into what it’s actually like to work in a particular job, career, or company day-to-day
Where do I find people to interview?
The short answer is, everywhere! Anywhere you can meet people that you’d like to interview is a good place. Here are some examples for places where you could start:
Alumni from your program
Networking events
Conferences
Social media
Friends of friends or family
If there’s someone whose career you admire, or are intrigued by, and you’d like to get to know them, an informational interview is an excellent way to start developing a connection with them. It shows your interest and enthusiasm for their field, and puts your name close at hand if anything should come up later, such as a job or internship, especially if you do a bit of work to maintain this connection.
Here are some examples of questions that you could ask:
What does a typical day or week look like?
How does your degree/training apply to your career?
What’s one thing that surprised you about your job/career?
What’s one skill that you developed (outside of school/training) that helps you do this job well?
If you could go back and talk to your past self, what would you want them to know?
Are there any skills/trainings/certificates that you’d recommend to someone who is interested in this career?
Based on this conversation, is there someone else that you recommend I connect with? Would you be willing to make an introduction?
Many professionals are happy to talk about their lives and professional journeys with someone who is interested in or passionate about their field, so don’t be afraid to reach out to them!
