Daemen College : Alumni : Alumni Career Partners : Informational Interview
Informational Interview
Questions to Ask an Alumni Career Partner
Since you will most likely be having a conversation with your alumni connection, whether over e-mail, phone, or in person, it’s important for you to be prepared. You may wish to connect with alumni simply to gather information about a potential career field or company. This type of situation is known as Informational Interviewing. In this type of interview, you may ask some of the following questions:
- How did you get started in this line of work?
- How did you prepare yourself for this profession?
- What does your typical day involve?
- How much travel is involved with your profession?
- What do you find most rewarding about your work?
- What are the challenges?
- What type of people do you work with?
- What, in your opinion, is the job outlook in this field/company/geographic location?
- What types of classes would help me prepare for your field?
- What skills or personal qualities are essential in this field?
- Could you recommend specific types of internships or volunteer work I can do to prepare myself for this career area?
- Which professional organizations would you suggest I join?
- Do you know anyone else in this career field who might be willing to talk to me about what they do?
- Would you allow me to use your name when I contact them?