Advanced Research 101

Why You Should Take Time for More Research

Now that you have identified one to three jobs you're most interested in, it’s time to set up an informational interview to learn more about those jobs.

If your organization allows you may also want to conduct job shadowing as doing so will allow you to take a deeper look into a job by actually observing someone do their work.

Ask purposeful questions during informational interviews. What you learn will help you decide your job-fit, or how well you think your skills, abilities, and interests match the job.

These are the 3 steps to conducting any advanced research:

Prepare
Schedule
Conduct

NOTE: Some healthcare organizations may not allow job shadowing opportunities. If job shadowing is allowed, there are likely strict guidelines for observing clinical roles. This is due to patient privacy and infection control considerations. Be sure to check with an appropriate contact or department at your organization to learn more about job shadowing options and the requirements.

Here's the value of an informational interview:

Get answers to your questions about the job.
Build relationships with people who work in the job and career field.
Get tips to help you prepare for a move into the job or career field.

Here's the value of job shadowing:

Asking very specific questions about the work.
Seeing real-world aspects of the job.
Understanding the typical work environment.