Tapping the Hidden Job Market Through Informational Interviews

In this tough job market, where three-fourths of job openings are not advertised, it appears networking plays a powerful role in securing employment. This book focuses on a less-than-obvious networking strategy, the informational interview. An informational interview is an interview with a professional that is conducted by a student or job seeker with the intention of finding out more about the professional¿s occupation or career field. The value of the informational interview is shared through the voices of eight college students and the corresponding eight professionals who offered the students internships as a result of the students¿ informational interviews with the professionals. This book reveals how structure and interaction work together in this context to foster internship offers. This book also juxtaposes an informational interview with a formal job interview and reveals that an informational interview addresses many of the limitations of a formal job interview. With internships becoming increasingly competitive to secure and with unemployment on the rise, this form of networking appears to be a promising way to tap the hidden job market.