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The end of the calendar year is a lull for many workplaces, but it’s a twofold respite for higher education in North America with the holiday season and the break between the fall and spring semesters. So what does that mean for people conducting a job search in higher education?
They might not be hearing back from institutions whose search committees are unable to sync their availability to meet. Job postings typically take a slight dip in December, as evidenced by the 11% average monthly decrease in postings on HigherEdJobs from November to December the last five years. Yet, there were more than 87,000 active postings on the site on Dec. 1, 2024, and HigherEdJobs will likely have around 25,000 new postings this month based on recent Decembers.
Still, deciding to put a search on hold until the new year is a matter of personal preference and circumstance, not some reaction to a less active job market.
If you’ve been submitting applications at a steady pace all semester, December might be a good time to pause and reevaluate your approach, or simply to take a break. If you’re working in higher education and have been too busy to focus on your job search, now might be the time to ramp up with your newfound capacity.
Regardless of where you find yourself this month, December and early January are excellent times to schedule and conduct informational interviews.
What Is an Informational Interview?
An informational interview is when a career-minded person asks a professional questions to collect information about a particular career, job, or workplace. It’s not a career counseling appointment, it’s not a conversation to advance your candidacy or influence a hiring decision (that would be a job interview), and it’s certainly not a time to seek advice.
Despite being a common practice among job seekers and networking professionals, informational interviews are often off-putting to many people. They might seem too formal, transactional, or devious, as if the interviewer is attempting to extract intelligence that should rightfully be earned by experience or merit. Maybe it’s the name. Both media and job “interviews” seem like confrontations.
The goal is to learn more about an occupation or organization, what it takes to succeed, and possibly expand your network so that you can know about jobs before they are posted or develop a relationship with a new mentor. Informational interviews are another name for networking conversations.
Who Should You Ask?
The best people to ask for an informational interview are those who have the job or supervise the position of the role you desire. If you are already an applicant for this specific job at an institution, it’s too late to request an informational interview. Instead, you should choose people from a similar institution. You should also have a frame of reference so the interviewee is more likely to agree and doesn’t think you simply Googled your way to them. Mention a colleague that you both know, someone who referred you to them, a project they worked on, or a presentation they did at a conference you attended.
How Should You Ask?
Send a short email or LinkedIn direct message expressing your intentions in a few sentences. Don’t explain your career or attach your resume/CV. Ask for 30 minutes of their time, preferably in person or videoconference, and don’t call it an “informational interview.” It’s a chat, discussion, or meeting to learn about their career path, department, or what’s made them successful. They might be flattered and eager to talk about the topic they know best. That’s probably why they work in higher education: to share their expertise.
When Should You Ask?
An email asking to connect in December is ideal, typically right after the semester ends or grades are submitted. They’re likely in a better mood with the sense of relief and holidays approaching.
During the semester break, higher education professionals struggle to meet collectively, as part of committees or on campus. Individuals, however, are usually more open to meet for coffee or take phone calls without obligations to meet with students or tend to other in-semester commitments.
If you don’t hear back in a week, try sending another email as a reminder, but don’t persist further. If they don’t respond by then, they are either not interested or too busy to fulfill the request. Any further attempts will make you become a nuisance or seem desperate.
Also, don’t pressure the interviewee into committing to a certain time in December or January. They might prefer to connect once the spring semester starts.
‘Tis the Season for Networking
Informational interviews shouldn’t be a one-off activity. Regardless of the outcome of your first attempt, you should make informational interviews part of your semester-break professional development.
It’s not just for job seekers. You can benefit by staying current in your field or exploring other career options.
Make a point to schedule as many as you can in December and January and then maybe follow up with the interviewee in the summer or next year around the holidays.
It’s a most wonderful time to network and share expertise, and, after you enjoy success in your career, you might become the type of professional others ask for an informational interview.
