My Top 3 Interviews

1. Jonathon Gerry
2. Jonathon Madden
3. Patrick Murray

Jonathon Gerry's entire interview process I thought was above and beyond what I was anticipating. His country report was thorough and well thought out and everything was formatted in a way that was easy to read and intriguing.

Jonathon Madden's process was also very interesting. I actually thought that he edged out the above interview just because his blog was formatted a little bit better. It was spread out a little more making it easier to read and comprehend, even though his content wasn't quite as up to par as others.

Patrick Murray's blog posts were also very good. The reason I liked his was because it wasn't quite as lengthy as some of the others I came across. He kept his posts concise and to the point, but still managed to squeeze in the information necessary to get his point across.

Scorecard

Post Interview Thoughts

After the interview was completed I had a very positive feeling. My interviewee was very thorough in giving good information as well as examples and personal stories to add to the responses. The interviewee I thought remained completed at ease throughout and I think that attributed to his answers.

Pre-Interview Thoughts

Going into the interview i didn't really know what to expect since I have little to no interview experience. However, I did try to prepare myself as much as possible with learning my questions and the country. I didn't have any trouble whatsoever lining up an interviewee since the first person I contacted being more than willing to help me out. Other than not knowing what to expect I really didn't have a whole lot of anxiety going into the interview process.

Country Report: Uganda

Uganda is a somewhat small country that is right in the heart of Africa. It is bordered by Kenya, the Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania, and South Sudan. Uganda is a relatively small country with the majority of the population being farmers and gatherers. Most of Uganda's people are in poverty and live a very simplistic lifestyle. Ugandans usually have some sort of religious affiliation and the majority of the people there are Catholic.

Interview Transcript

Me: What is the value of family in Uganda? Is family put on a pedestal?

Interviewee: Yeah I would say family is pretty important, pretty up there. Family members tend to live together, I lived with my mom and my dad at my grandfather’s farm, and a lot of my family was nearby too so we didn’t really want to move away. Family is really close together.

Me: What’s the family structure like?

Interviewee: I would say that it is usually the male, like when we lived with my grandfather he was kind of the oldest so most of the time everything had to go through him.

Me: How does Uganda culture differ from US culture?

Interviewee: I would say that in America there’s a lot more emphasis on material things, whereas in Uganda it was more about like people, like relationships and like here it’s more about what you have. I feel like there life was more simple and people didn’t worry about things as much and people were more content than here where you don’t worry about what house you have or what car you have.

Me: So what are some highlights in your country, like what are some things that make people think about your country?

Interviewee: A big place I would say is right next to Lake Victoria it’s like a big tourist place because they have a couple zoos and wild animals there and when you’re there you can see like lions and other animals you wouldn’t normally see. Like for example, where we lived in Uganda at my grandpa’s farm you’d see like monkeys in the back yard.

Me: What role do women play in the culture?

Interviewee: I would say that the women are kind of less because usually the man is supposed to like provide for the household and the women stays home with the kids, like my dad worked and my mom stayed at home.

Me: What is the most famous food in Uganda?

Interviewee: They have these things called Posho, where they have flowers and I don’t know how to describe it but it’s really good and you usually eat it with like beans and chicken and I used to eat it a lot.

Me: Is food pretty available in Uganda?

Interviewee: For me and my family it was pretty available because we lived on a big farm that my grandfather owned with a lot of land so we had a bunch. But back when I was little I would see like other people who didn’t have as much.

Me: What is the education system like?

Interviewee: I went to a school with uniforms, and you would get spanked in class and stuff. But learning was pretty big there but if you didn’t have money you couldn’t really go to school. We learned English and math but I would say that the teachers weren’t really as good as here like they didn’t know as much as the teachers in the states.

Me: So do a lot of people have the chance to attend college?

Interviewee: Yeah there’s the University of Nairobi and my mom went there but usually it’s like really slim for people to make it, you were either really smart or you had the money. My mom would tell me stories of how there was one guy who was a father and his son was starting middle school but they were in the same grade because he never had the money before. It’s usually just middle school and high school that people go to.

Me: How do people there view the US?

Interviewee: They think that it’s a country that is really wealthy which is true but like back in Uganda everyone thought that the people going to the states were like going to be rich and that everyone is rich in America. But coming here you realize that it’s not like that like you have to work for it, so that’s what a lot of people think, and my mom still has family there and they think she like has a lot of money so they always call and ask for money but that’s just not the case.

Me: So what are some of the top social past times in Uganda like sports?

Interviewee: I would say that Rugby is really popular there like my mom played in college. Soccer is really popular there but we don’t really have a team or anything there, but just like me growing up I didn’t really sports until I came here like all I did was go to school and then work on my grandpa’s farm, like all I knew was work.

Me: What about religion, what are the different religions there?

Interviewee: There’s a lot of Catholics like my dad was Catholic so I grew up Catholic but there’s like witch craft and stuff, like my mom told me a story about this one time when she was at school and this girl cast a spell on her and her roommate and they couldn’t move at all. For me I don’t really believe it but she says it happened. But there are just a lot of evil or evil things happening there.

Me: What is the dominant religion there?

Interviewee: I would have to say it’s Catholic for the most part.

Me: And is it pretty tough to practice your religion there?

Interviewee: There were a lot of attacks from the government that you wouldn’t push your religion on anyone else like just to keep it to yourself.

Me: What are some holidays that are celebrated there?

Interviewee: Christmas is really big there but for Christmas we didn’t really exchange gifts, it was more about just being with family and celebrating Jesus. In Uganda we didn’t really celebrate birthdays there so that was really new to me coming here because people are like “oh it’s your birthday let’s have a party”. But I would say Christmas is really big, and Easter, and I don’t really remember any others.

Challenges and Benefits of Interviewing an International Student

     There are several challenges and benefits to interviewing international students but for the most part the benefits will far outwiegh the challenges that can arise. In fact, I would go as far as to say that the challenges that you work through can result in a very beneficial interview. Take the language barrier for instants, when an interview begins depending on where the interviewee is from, it can definitely be very challenging to understand and respond possitively to what the interviewee is saying. I think that most people would agree that the language barrier is one of the premier issues that face our world today. An article by Juliet Yonek and Cynthia Hedges Greising states that "hospitals and health systems are encountering increasing numbers of patients with limited English proficiency (LEP). For these patients, language and communication barriers pose a serious threat to receiving safe, high-quality health care. Numerous studies have shown that language barriers impede access to health care, compromise quality of care and increase the risk of adverse health outcomes." No matter how unfortunate this may be, I believe that the cause of this difficulty is that there is a decrease in the amount of people that are willing to put in the time to get to know people who may not speak the same dialect and/or language as them. This can result in a huge benefit to interviewing an international student because it moves one closer to understanding both the person they are talking with and to better knowing the world around them.
     A second challenge is that of cultural differences. The importance of eye contact is something that changes in almost every culture. This can take some substantial research in order to figure out what will be acceptable to your interviewee. Jim Johannasen has a very valuable resource that categorizes for you which nations generally prefer eye contact and which nations do not. For example, he writes that American's strongly encourage eye contact, which for me is something that I always try to focus on when communicating. Europe is largely the same in this sense but the difference comes when you are communicating with someone from Asian, African, and Middle East nations. According to Jim Johannasen, people from these nations can see eye contact as a sign of disrespect, which can create an uncomfortable atmosphere for the interview. However, if your research is done correctly and thoroughly, you can walk into the interview with confidence and conduct your interview much more affectively. Also, having learned these things and practiced them in a real situation can greatly benefit you when it comes to everyday interaction with friends and even aid you in your job if the occasion calls for it.
     There are many more challenges and benefits to interviewing an international student, but these are just two examples of what there is to gain from working through the challenges. The fact of the matter is that if you are well prepared and know your interviewee and the basics of their culture, there is nothing but benefits to interviewing an international student.

     Group Evaluation

Interview Objectives

1. Know my questions inside and out, know how to describe what I'm hoping to learn with each question.
2. Prepare for each interview in a way that is unique to the person you're interviewing.
3. Dress professionally.
4. Choose a location that is quiet and has few distractions.
5. Remain focused and concentrated throughout the interview, maintaining eye contact and reacting well to the person's comments.
6. Be prepared to keep the attention of the interviewee if distractions arise.
7. Have a general closing remark prepared.

Three Country Paper

     The first country I am anticipating one of my interviewees to be from is Germany. Germany interests me for a few different reasons. Namely, it intrigues me simply because it is where my heritage is from and I am very interested to find out if the stories that I have heard from my relatives line up with those told by people I interview. Another reason I am hoping to come across a person from Germany is because Germany is one of the worlds riches countries when it comes to history. Germany has been a part in at the very least most of America's interaction with Europe for the last hundred years.

     The second country I am hoping to find information on is that of France. I think that a lot of people, especially in the St. Cloud area are more than likely going to be from Africa or Asia or countries like that and having been around people from those areas makes me want to gain a little bit of knowledge on some of the European countries that are very prominent in the world's standings but might be a little less prominent in this area of the world.

     The third and final country that I am hoping to learn a little bit more about is Russia. Russia catches my attention for a variety of reasons. Firstly, I think Russia is a very isolated country and it can at times be difficult to find people from Russia or to truly learn about what the Russian culture is like without going there and experiencing it for yourself. Secondly, I believe that Russia is a bit of a question mark now days as to what the country and people from the country are really like. A lot of times Russia can get a bad reputation in movies that come out of Hollywood but as we all know Hollywood is often an unreliable source when it comes to finding out what a country and its people are truly like.

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