Who is the Interview Techniques course suitable for?

The Interview Techniques course is suitable for anyone who wants to get more out of conversations, from journalists and recruiters to researchers, HR professionals and managers. You learn to improve your questioning techniques, listen better and deal with emotion or resistance. No prior knowledge is required. you work on practical skills that you apply directly in journalistic interviews, job interviews or in-depth interviews.

Which topics are covered during the Interview Techniques course?

During the Interview Techniques course you cover interview types and question types, preparing for the conversation, conversation techniques such as listening, summarising and asking follow-up questions, and dealing with emotions and resistance. You also learn to unravel vague statements, keep track of the main thread and write up the interview professionally. You finish with a practical checklist that you can apply directly in practice.

Which interview techniques will you learn during the Interview Techniques course?

During the Interview Techniques course you learn conversation and questioning skills such as making contact, empathising, active listening, summarising and probing. You practise with open and closed questions, building in silences and unravelling vagueness or contradictions. You also learn to deal with emotions and resistance, so that in classroom training you can hold genuinely in-depth conversations.

What is the delivery format of the Interview Techniques course and how is it structured?

The Interview Techniques course is taught in a classroom setting over several half-day sessions. You work in a small group under the guidance of an experienced trainer. The structure alternates between theory, practising conversation techniques, reflection and practical experience. Beforehand, an individual intake takes place in which your learning objectives are identified. This way the programme matches your situation.

Do you receive a certificate after the Interview Techniques course?

Yes, on completing the Interview Techniques course you receive a certificate of participation from Learnit. This certificate confirms that you attended the classroom course in full and actively practised the conversation techniques, questioning skills and interview methods covered. You can add the certificate to your CV or LinkedIn profile to demonstrate your development in conducting professional interviews.

What is the difference between the Interview Techniques course at Learnit and self-study using books or online videos?

The main difference lies in practising with feedback. In self-study you learn the theory about open questions, LSD (listening, summarising, asking follow-up questions) and conversation techniques, but you get no response to your own behaviour. In Learnit's classroom course you alternate theory with practical exercises, role plays and direct feedback from the trainer and fellow participants. You practise concretely with breaking through socially desirable answers, dealing with emotions and resistance and unravelling vague statements. In addition, an individual intake takes place beforehand, so that your own learning objectives are included in the programme. Choose self-study if you only want to acquire knowledge; choose the classroom course if you genuinely want to change your interviewing behaviour.

How do I know whether the Interview Techniques course suits me if I am not a journalist?

The Interview Techniques course has a broader application than journalism alone. The course is aimed at anyone who holds conversations in which gathering information is central: think of HR staff who conduct job interviews, researchers, recruiters, managers who conduct exit interviews, communications advisers or consultants who carry out needs assessments. The course suits you if you want to get past socially desirable answers, ask better follow-up questions about vague or contradictory statements, and learn to deal with emotion and resistance in a conversation. No prior knowledge or specific previous education is required. In an individual intake beforehand your learning objectives are identified, so that the programme matches your own practice. The course is taught in a classroom and consists of several half-day sessions.

How quickly can I apply the interview techniques from this course in my work?

You can put the techniques to use immediately after the course. During the course you actively practise conversation skills such as LSD (Listening, Summarising, Probing), building in silences and unravelling vague statements. This practice takes place in a classroom setting with direct feedback, which means you anchor what you have learned straight away. For basic skills such as phrasing questions and preparing conversations, you notice the effect in your very next interview. More complex techniques. Such as dealing with resistance or breaking through socially desirable answers. Usually require a few real-life interviews before they become routine. The checklist you receive at the end of the course helps you to apply the steps consistently until it becomes automatic.

What does this Interview Techniques course give me that I do not learn in a general conversation skills or communication course?

A general conversation skills course mainly covers basic skills such as listening, summarising and asking follow-up questions. The Interview Techniques course at Learnit goes a step further and focuses specifically on the interview as a form of conversation with a clear information objective. You learn to recognise different types of interview and to choose the corresponding types of question. In addition, you work on unravelling vagueness and contradictions, breaking through socially desirable answers and keeping hold of the main thread. Preparation (objective, interview guide, choice of words per target group) and the follow-up work afterwards (notes, recordings, sources) are also covered. These are elements that are usually missing from general communication courses. The course is classroom-based and consists of several sessions. You finish with your own checklist that you can use directly in your work.

When do you opt for a classroom-based Interview Techniques course instead of an in-company programme?

The classroom course is suitable if you want to take part individually and practise with participants from other organisations and sectors. This gives you a broader picture of interview situations, from journalistic conversations to job or customer interviews. An in-company programme is more practical when an entire team shares the same working context and you are working together towards a specific goal, such as customer interviews or research conversations. The classroom version offers more time for practising conversation and questioning skills, dealing with resistance and unravelling vagueness. Beforehand, an individual intake takes place in which your learning objectives are identified and incorporated into the final programme.

How do I prepare for the Interview Techniques course and what is expected of me during the course?

Prior to the Interview Techniques course (classroom-based), an individual intake takes place. During this, the trainer maps out your learning objectives, prior knowledge and practical situation. The final programme is determined on that basis. No specific prior education is required. It does help, however, if you bring along concrete interview situations from your own work: a job interview you are going to conduct, a journalistic interview you are preparing or a research interview you have to carry out. During the course you alternate between experiencing, experimenting with behaviour, reflecting and exploring theory. There is plenty of action: you actively practise techniques such as listening, summarising and probing. So do not expect passive knowledge transfer. You are responsible yourself for your growth process and for translating it into your own practice.

How much does the Interview Techniques course cost and how long does it last?

You will find the current price at the top right of this course page, together with the schedule, location and delivery format. For in-company or bespoke courses we are happy to provide a quotation on request.

Interview Techniques course

Name: Interview techniques
Price: 1250.0 EUR
Availability: InStock
Rating: 8.6 (37 reviews)

Want to get the full story out of an interview? With the right questioning techniques you get more out of every conversation. You learn to prepare in a targeted way, to probe into what matters and to move beyond socially desirable answers.

Description

In the Interview Techniques course you learn how to conduct interviews in a structured and professional way. You gain insight into the context in which you conduct interviews and into the objectives you want to achieve with them. You then work on thorough preparation: gathering the right information, making clear arrangements and formulating questions precisely.

You explore various conversation techniques you can use during an interview, such as making contact, probing, summarising and using silences. You also learn how to avoid socially desirable answers, unravel vague statements and deal with emotion or resistance. Finally, you look at processing the information you have gathered, so that you make the most of an interview after it has finished as well.

After this course you will have the skills to hold engaging conversations and get the most out of every interview, whether it is a journalistic conversation or a job interview.

Topics

Interview types and question types: which type of interview are you conducting and which questions suit it?
The way we communicate: how does the communication process work and what pitfalls should you watch out for?
Preparing the interview: what is your objective and what information do you want to bring to light?
Responding to the person you are talking to: adapting your interview guide, phrasing and choice of words to the other person.
The atmosphere of the conversation: creating and maintaining the right atmosphere by putting yourself in the other person's shoes.
Conversation and questioning skills: making contact, giving attention, active listening, summarising and asking follow-up questions.
Structuring the conversation: working with timing and deliberately allowing silences.
Unravelling vagueness and contradictions: how to probe sharply on this.
Keeping an overview and staying in control: keeping to the main thread during your conversation.
Dealing with emotion and resistance: recognising resistance and dealing with it appropriately.
Avoiding pitfalls: what you may run into and how to resolve it.
Writing up the interview: processing notes, recordings, sources and agreements.
Checklist: all the tools provided come together in a practical checklist.

Result

After this training course you will be able to prepare properly for interviews, formulate sharp questions and gather the right information. You will conduct interviews in a structured and professional manner and hold engaging conversations in which you uncover that one relevant detail.

Target audience

This course is intended for anyone who wants to get more out of interviews, whether these are journalistic interviews, job interviews or customer and user interviews. Do you recognise yourself in one or more of the points below?

You want to improve your questioning techniques in order to get more information out of a conversation, you want to gain more insight into the process of mutual influence during a conversation, both at content level and at relationship level, you want to learn which techniques are best suited to a specific interview objective, you want to deal better with emotions and resistance in the person you are speaking to, you want to learn to listen better to the other person.

This list is of course not exhaustive; everyone brings their own learning questions. What would you like to focus on within the theme of interview techniques?

Teaching method

During the course we alternate between concrete experience, experimenting with behaviour and techniques, reflection and exploring theory. This makes the programme suitable for every type of participant. There is plenty of action in the course, so that you actually experience the effect of new behaviour. That makes it possible to recognise success.

We also emphasise that everyone is responsible for their own development and takes ownership of it. We invite you to reflect continuously and to make connections with your own practice. Our aim is to increase your insight and to let you make the translation to your own situation yourself. That increases the chance of genuine behavioural change.

Prior knowledge

You do not need any specific prior knowledge for this course. Are you interested in conducting interviews and would you like to become better at it? Then you are very welcome. You do not need any experience in conducting interviews to take part.

In-company

Would you like to organise this training for a whole group or several groups? This can be cost-effective. For example, we can tailor the content entirely to your organisation, and training a whole group is also cheaper.

Are you looking at large numbers of participants or a complete academy? That involves a great deal. Consider planning and communication, for example, or identifying and agreeing the objectives and content of the training. Or differences in level, feedback mechanisms and safeguarding. Fortunately, Learnit has extensive experience in this field (more than 25 years) and we are happy to help you through this process.

Request a quote

Language

The training is given in Dutch as standard. The trainer has a good command of English. English-language course material can be used. With a minimum enrolment of 3 participants, the training can also be given entirely in English.

Number of days:

2 days

Course times:

from 10 am to 5 pm

Study load:

14 hours

Education level:

This training is suitable for all levels.

Exemptions:

Exemptions do not apply to this course.

Preparation time:

No preparation time applies to this course.

Certificate:

At the end of the course, a certificate is issued as proof of participation.

The best training for you

At Learnit you will always find a course that takes you further. From (technical) IT skills to communication or personal leadership. You can also choose the training format that suits you best: a classroom course, a tailor-made course at your own office, an online course or an e-learning. We have the right course and the right format for everyone. Because learning in the way that suits you best delivers the best results.

Moving forward together

Taking a training course at Learnit means learning together. Together with your experienced trainer, together with your course group or together with your colleagues. And whether you take the training at home, at your office or at one of our training locations, we are always available to help you. To share our knowledge with you in a way that is genuinely useful to you. Getting further together through personal attention and understanding each other well; that is what we believe in.

Apply it directly in your work

Learning theory from a book that you can then hardly use in your work? Not at Learnit! Whichever training you take with us, you can put it to use at your workplace straight away. Because of the unique learning objectives you set together with the trainer at the start of the training. Because of the alternation between theory and (interactive) practical assignments. And by bringing the challenges you face in your daily work along to the training.