Getting ready for an interview is like completing a puzzle. A person needs to prepare every aspect and fit them all together in order to have the interview be successful. Everything included in the interview is important, however some parts may take longer such as creating questions. In the interview process I needed to prepare, conduct and transcribe the interview.
When I started to prepare for the first interview, I first brainstormed a list of questions. I wanted to ask questions that would spark interest in the interviewee. After I brainstormed a list of questions I picked seven that I would like to ask. The other seven questions were obtained from the class core list. Next, I needed to schedule interviews. I wanted to interview international students from China. Susan Lu introduced me to a friend of hers named Yan He. We set a place and time for the interview. The day before the interview was to be conducted, I charged my laptop and tested the program that would record the interview. I also printed off two copies of the questions and reviewed them.
When I arrived at the interview, I set up my laptop. Yan He arrived and I introduced my self and again explained why I was conducting this interview. I made sure the microphone on the laptop was pointing towards her. We began by talking about how her day was going and how she was acquainted with Susan Lu. After a few minutes I asked her where she was from. While asking the remainder of the questions, I tried to incorporate them in an order that made sense to where the previous question had left off. Towards the end of the interview I mentioned her answer to the question of what she does on the weekends in the United States. While doing this I focused on what Yan He had said she was doing this weekend in hope that she would further explain and this would be a good opportunity to end the interview since it was a Friday afternoon and the beginning of her weekend.
Following the interview I wrote the transcript. The program I was using broke the audio into five minutes sections. I started with the first section. While the audio was playing I typed what was being said. After a few seconds I would replay what was previously said once or twice to make sure everything that was said was typed. This process was repeated many times throughout each section of the interview.
2. Interview Report:
On February 18, 2010, I interviewed Yan He. She is an international student from China. The interview lasted approximately 40 minutes. I feel that the interview was very successful. She gave a lot of description in her answers. Yan He was very open. She answered every question except one without hesitation. The reason she hesitated after one question was the way it was worded. Therefore, before the next interview this question will be reworded.
One of the questions I asked was, how is the media different from the United States and China? I wrote this question not knowing that Yan He's major is mass communications. I was very happy with how she responded to this question and I also for it very interesting. She gave examples that she has personally experienced, such as seen the difference between television shows in the United States compared to those in China.
My first objective was to learn about a new culture. In the interview I learned a lot, however, in the next interview I would like to go more in depth. Another objective I had was to conduct a successful interview that obtains good information. I feel that I reached this objective, but there is always room for improvement. I am open to feedback that will help improvement my interviews. The next objective that I have was to learn types of experiences international students have had in the United States so far and whether of not they have been positive. This objective was also completed. This is shown by how Yan He explained what she likes to do on the weekends here, which was shopping. Also, she enjoys attending campus activities.
During this interview I learned a lot. It was laid back or relaxed in the sense that Yan He felt comfortable right away which is important. I hope to improve as I complete more interviews.
3. Country Report:
China is located in eastern Asia and is home to 1,330,141,295 as of July 2010 according to the World Factbook. China has unique climates, an interesting form of government, a changing economy, and rich history.
Firstly, China is slightly smaller then the United States with concern to area. From the U.S. Department of State, China has 9,596,961 square kilometers which makes it the fourth largest country in the world. A few of the natural resources that China has include coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, lead and zinc. The climate varies between north, central, south, and northwest China. In northern China the winters can be extremely cold and the summers bring a lot of rain. In central China the summers are humid and the winters can become as cold as northern China. While the south receives typhoons in the summer and the winters tend to be short. Lastly, northwest China has hot, dry summers with little rain and the winters severely cold.
Next, the form of government for the People’s Republic of China is the Communist Party. China’s capital is Beijing. According to The World Factbook, China received their independence on October 1st, 1949. This day has become a national holiday in China.
Like almost every other country, China’s economy is constantly changing. “In 2010 China became the world’s largest exporter.” (The World Factbook) This shows that China is working to expand their economy, especially since they have changed their economy to be market-oriented. China has been striving to play a more major role in the global economy.
China is full of rich history and many traditions that have been passed on from generation to generation. Unlike the United States, China is an ancient civilization and country. They have thousands of years of history that has helped for the country China is today. They strive to remember and practice ancient Chinese myths and cultural traditions in their everyday lives.
Essentially, China has a very rich history that has been growing for thousands of years. They also have a booming economy and a Communist Party as government. China is also a fairly large country with many natural resources.
"CIA - The World Factbook." Welcome to the CIA Web Site — Central Intelligence Agency. Web. 27 Feb. 2011. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ch.html
"China." U.S. Department of State. Web. 27 Feb. 2011. http://www.state.gov/p/eap/ci/ch/
"China's Climate." China Travel Tour Guide - China Travel Guide, Information & Tips. Web. 27 Feb. 2011. http://www.china-travel-tour-guide.com/about-china/index.shtml
Natalie: What country are you from?
Yan: I come from from china. South part of China. I live in small city pretty much like St. Cloud maybe more population. Its a developing city but I love my city. I lived there until I was almost 22 years old. I never go to another city or country until I come here. so I live with my parents and i'm the only child in my family. I'm 24 years old i'm getting old so i'm not getting married young. i'm just kidding (laughter) I want to find a job here and get work experience for like two or three years and then go back to china to live with my family.
Natalie: What is your major here?
Yan: My major is Mass Communication focused on marketing. This is my first semester, I used to study somewhere else for one year.
Natalie: Why did you choose mass communication?
Yan: Because I like public relations. I like to communicate with people with different backgrounds and I like to share my experiences and interests to other people and i'm interested in their experiences because I came to St. Cloud and there are many people who come from other countries in the area.
Natalie: How is the media different from the United States and you home country?
Yan: I think some parts are same and some parts are different. I think in china we can not have any sexual or any unlimited behavior in public even in any television or t.v. show we can not show anything about that such as sex. The most limited behavior is kiss. We cannot have a show with sexual behavior. I think thats different. Another part is the same such as advertisements. But i think because chinese is communist and the United States is democrat country so we can not say anything negative ideas for our president but america other people have own ideas and you guys can have any different opinion about Obama but we cannot have any different opinion about our president.
Natalie: Why did you decide to study in the United States instead of China?
Yan: Well I studied there for a little bit, but I always wanted to get some work experience here so I thought it would be a good idea to attend some college in the United States.
Natalie: How does the climate in your home country compare to here?
Yan: It is very different. In south China where I am from we don't have any snow and it is warm. Here is it really really cold and i'm not used to it.
Natalie: Who takes care of the finances in your family?
Yan: My father does all of the finances. I don't have to really think about that until I am older but when I get married then my husband will probably do that.
Natalie: What kind of traditions did you have growing up?
Yan: Chinese traditions? Chinese traditions are, I grew up with my parents. I live in small city so its kind of tradition for my parents and teachers to teach me I need to become good person like get a good job or married in the early age like 20 to 25 years old and stay at home but recently its changed a lot. The chinese women are more independent but in my opinion I still want to stay at home and be with baby and my husband.
Natalie: What kind of holidays would you celebrate?
Yan: Spring Festival is the biggest and traditional chinese celebration and holiday and Moon festival and independence day and labor day is also a big holiday in china we have a 7 day holiday for independence day and labor day.
Natalie: What time of the year is that?
Yan: Labor day is May 1st to May 7th and Labor day is October 1st to October 7th. But this year our government canceled independent day holiday so we don't have 7 day holiday for independence day
Natalie: What are the popular types of communication between people of our age?
Yan: Can you explain that question a little bit?
Natalie: Such as texting or Facebook.
Yan: Oh I got it. I think for the teenager or the young adults we use the Facebook but chinese Facebook its different because we cannot not use Facebook.
Natalie: So you can't get it from any computer?
Yan: Yes, its prohibited from any computer. So we use Chinese Facebook and Chinese MSN. It has a different name called QQ the same way to communication with other people. University student and High School student use text to talk to each other even very emergency things or very big deal we use still text. We don't like to call each other but for our parents and people 40 years older they use phone to connect to each other.
Natalie: How do people in your country view the united states?
Yan: We think the United States is free and the people are more independent and we think the United States is a rich country there is a lot of reserves. A few people share many resources because in china we have a lot of population. I think the United States is a high salary and high welfare country.
Natalie: How are the schools different from the school you use to go to and in the United States?
Yan: I think they are totally different because in china i'm graduate student. I finished my bachelor degree in Chinese university. I think in chinese university we don't need to listen in class and do homework very well because we just go to school every day and attend class every day and we can sleep in the class and text in class but we don't actually listen to what the teacher says. We just spend a certain amount of time in the class so in actually in a chinese university we cannot learn to much thing if we do not want to learn. I think it is different, here we have to do homework and we have a quiz every week. We only have a final quiz and exam at the end of the semester in china.
Natalie: When you were growing up who lived with you in your home?
Yan: My parents i'm the only child in my home. My grandparents live in a different place.
Natalie: What foods do you have in your home country that aren't popular in the United States?
Yan: I think because I live in south part of china my province, spicy food is popular in my city and I think here spicy food is also popular, but I know here usually the people here don't want to eat very strange food like dog but in china in some parts they eat this kind of food.
Natalie: In China what do you do for fun on the weekends?
Yan: Some chinese boys don't go to school and they break up with their girlfriend they need time to concentrate on online game.
Natalie: Really?
Yan: Yeah its true, I still can't believe it. Most of the girls like shopping all the day.
Natalie: Do you go to big shopping malls or just a few stores?
Yan: Yeah both, we can get up at 9 o clock and back home 10 o'clock but we can not go to school 9 o'clock because we cannot get up before 9 just for school.
Natalie: What do you do on the weekends here?
Yan: I want to do some outdoor activities but for me it is hard because I don't have too many American friends. I mostly stay at home or attend on campus activities.
Natalie: What kind of stores do you shop at in China? Are they similar to the ones around here?
Yan: We have Walmart but we don't have Target.
Natalie: Have you been to the Walmart here?
Yan: Yes, they are the exact same from the one here and the one in China, even the prices are the same. We also have a lot of other popular brand that come form here. We have Nike and Addidas, all the things that come from another country are really popular in china.
Natalie: Where else have you gone shopping while in the United States?
Yan: I have gone to the Mall of America a few times and the outlet mall. We would like to go to more places but it is hard because we do not have a car and many of our friends do not have a car.
Natalie: What do you normally buy when you go shopping here?
Yan: Mostly clothes, here the local brands like American Eagle and Hollister and those kind of brands Here it is more cheaper then in China. The same shirt is more money because we have to pay the tax or extra fee if the same brand is bought in China. The brand is made in US but the clothes are made in China. So even all the clothes made in China are not sold in China.
Natalie: Do you have a job here?
Yan: We want to have a job here. Last semester my friends and I stood outside in the winter by Garvey. It was an on campus job but we failed because my schedule will not work with a job. I wanted money for my cell phone. Here bought the most cheapest cell phone. It was $20 dollars. I have a family plan with some of my friends to save money. I don't get a lot of service with my phone though.
Natalie: Are the houses in China and the United States different?
Yan: Its different in America, but I think some look similar in other cities such as Miami because I went their last summer. Our rich houses are similar to the ones there and the people have boats in Miami. They live a luxury life style. But here it looks more pure and the people are more nice.
Natalie: What sports are poplar in China?
Yan: NBA is very popular. When I was here I went to the new Stadium here to watch a Baseball. Its very big and beautiful. Its very new. That was the first time I ever saw it so i didn't know the baseball rules. I just know when all the people cheer. I didn't know what happens, even i don't have a good view because i need glasses but i don't have. even i cannot see where is the ball. Where is the baseball? i don't know. Because i sat very far from the game so i just saw the people drink beer and eat peanuts. I just ate peanuts and bread and watched the people because I do not know the rules.
Natalie: What sports do athletes in China play professionally that are popular?
Yan: I think soccer is the main one. It is very high salary and income but I don' think other sports are really popular.
Natalie: What kind of movies have you watch here?
Yan: I love watching a lot of Gossip Girl. Every time I watch Gossip Girl, every episode has a different ending, the surprise ending. The relationships are too complex, too complex.
Natalie: On the weekends that you have spent here you mentioned how you attend on campus activities. What kind of activities do you attend?
Yan: Well, for example tonight i'm going to a movie with a friends here on campus.
Natalie: O I see that sounds like fun. What movies have you seen here?
Yan: I have seen Mean Girls with the teenage girls. I also saw the movie where the girls wears a red "A" on her shirt. I think its call easy A. The movie is based on a book. It was really good.
Natalie: I'm glad you enjoyed them. I hope you also enjoy the movie that you go to tonight.
