How to conduct an informational interview about a career

An informational interview is a conversation about someone’s work that helps you explore a profession or role. It is not a job interview or a disguised request to be hired. Prepare a question, agree on a manageable conversation and afterwards distinguish the person’s experience from general conclusions about the field.

Identify the decision you want to inform

UC Berkeley’s career guidance describes informational interviewing as learning from someone’s experience in a field of interest. To prepare, identify a decision that this information could help you make.

In an illustrative example, a customer-support specialist is considering user research. “Should I change careers?” is too broad a question to hand to a stranger. Finding out which tasks occupy a working week and which skills mattered at the start is more manageable.

Choose someone with relevant experience. A recent entrant may remember early assignments, while a manager may explain how responsibilities are divided. Their perspectives can complement one another, but neither person represents the entire profession.

Agree on a conversation without a hidden request

Briefly explain who you are, why you chose this person and what you want to understand. Berkeley’s guidance on reaching out emphasises brevity and a specific reason for making contact.

Hello Anna, I work in customer support and am exploring entry-level user research. I read your public account of the service research project. Would you be comfortable answering three questions about early assignments? I can send them in writing or arrange a short conversation if you prefer.

This is a fictional template: use only context that is true for you. Agree on the duration and channel, and accept a refusal. Do not send a portfolio for extensive review when the agreement was simply to discuss everyday work.

Prepare questions about actual tasks

Select a few questions for your decision rather than using a universal questionnaire. For this example, possible prompts are:

• What task did you handle in a recent project, and what did you deliver to the team?
• What differed from your expectations before entering the role?
• Which skills did you need in your first assignments?
• What small practice task could help someone experience this kind of work?
• Which parts of your experience depend on your particular company or team?

Clarify unfamiliar terms and the sequence of work. “What happened after interviewing a user?” may provide more useful context than asking for the person’s “main secret of success”.

Do not request confidential materials, customer information or internal employer decisions. Your contact may describe a general process or decline to discuss a particular example. One conversation cannot establish every requirement of a role.

Keep the conversation within the agreed scope

At the start, confirm the purpose and available time. Let the person finish an answer before checking your understanding: “Have I understood correctly that preparation took substantial time in your project?” That leaves room for correction.

Separate the account you heard, your interpretation and questions to investigate further. If you want to record the conversation, ask first and explain the intended use. A few personal notes may be sufficient, without unnecessary personal details.

As the agreed time ends, choose the most important clarification. If other topics remain, ask whether you may send a further question later. Willingness to have a conversation is not agreement to an ongoing mentoring role.

Turn the information into a next check

Afterwards, record what is clearer, what remains unknown and which small action you will try. You might examine a public research report or attempt the suggested practice task.

Thank the person for specific help and fulfil any commitment you made. Compare the account with other perspectives and public descriptions of the work. One team’s experience does not justify concluding that all researchers work in the same way.

For a broader introduction, use the guide to professional networking. To support collaboration that has already begun, focus on clear working agreements. A useful interview gives you a better-informed next question or practical trial, rather than a promise of a new position.