For this assignment you will interview someone who, as part of their job, counsels individuals.  Some examples of appropriate people to interview may include a residence hall assistant (or RA), an academic advisor, someone who works in the campus counseling center, a student health aid, a member of the clergy, or even some financial advisors.  The only stipulation is that you cannot interview someone who uses interviewing skills to sell a product (e.g., a salesperson).

The purpose of your interview is to gather information explaining "real world" practices related to counseling interviews.  Because of that, you should consider this an information gathering interview and ask a variety of questions to elicit as much information as possible.  These are only a few examples of the issues you may want to discuss with your interviewee:

• What is the exact nature of their job/position and how do interviewing skills play a part?
• What skills and/or practices have they found effective for interviewing and communicating with others in the context of their job/position?
• How do they deal with different types of individuals/personalities?
• What type of training did they receive for their job?
• What are some stories that stick out in their minds as great and not-so-great interviewees? 
• What advice would they give someone just starting in their position?

On your interview guide, include a place for your interviewee to sign, date, and provide contact information.  Your interviewee should complete this information at the conclusion of your interview and your interview guide should be handed in with your paper.

The final product of this interview will be a three to five page paper discussing your findings from the interview.  You should relate information from the interview to concepts discussed in the chapter, but the ultimate goal of the paper is to provide an information resource to readers about interviewing and communication skills required for the job area of the person you interviewed.  The paper should be typed.