Structured and Semi-Structured Interviews

Luchanna Dix

Wright State University

 Structured and Semi-Structured Interviews

Research Question:

The research question chosen for this assignment was, “What is the expectation

concerning the level of preparedness of Enrollment Services Advisors (ESAs) as it pertains to

students who come to Raider Connect?” This question was chosen as an extension of my

observation assignment where I looked at the level of preparedness (or non-preparedness) of

students who come to Raider Connect. I wanted to see what the expectations are of the ESAs

serving these students. I have been in Raider Connect less than a year and noticed that there is a

lot of staff frustration when dealing with sometimes hundreds of students a day (during peak

periods), many of which have to be served repeatedly for the same issue. (5a)

The Structured Interview Process:

For the structured interview, I chose participants based on the length of time they had

spent in Raider Connect as well as their general experience in customer service. Respondents

were chosen based on their willingness to give candid responses to the interview questions. The

knowledge level of the interviewees (as observed in day-to-day performance of tasks by the

interviewer) was also considered when selecting those interviewed. (5b)(i)

When generating the questions for the structured interview, I tried to think of questions

that would give me basic information concerning the expectation level of the ESAs being

interviewed. One of the main reasons I chose this research question is because I wondered if my

expectations were different from those of other ESAs who had been in the position longer than

myself. My concern was that, since I am new to the world of Higher Education, my expectations
of college students were unrealistic. The Structured Interview Guide is provided as Exhibit 1.

(5b)(ii)

A recording device was used for data collection. I used my iPhone to record all

interviews and participants were asked in advance if it was agreeable to them that I do so. All

gave their verbal consent. I also took notes with pen and paper to capture additional data, such as

facial expressions, apparel worn and any other data points that could be useful in the analysis of

the interview results. (5b)(iii)

Raider Connect is located in the Student Union, 3640 Colonel Glenn Highway. The

Student Union is one of the main hubs of the Wright State Campus. For the structured interview,

there was one African-American male participant and one Caucasian female participant. Since

this is the summer semester and a college setting, more casual attire is permitted. The interview

for the male participant took place in the Raider Connect administrative office area at my desk

after the workday was over. Participant agreed to this because the office was quiet and the

interview would be uninterrupted. The interview began at 5:15 PM and lasted 9 minutes 55

seconds. The male participant wore jeans, a polo shirt and sneakers. The interview with the

female participant took place in one of the “huddle” rooms in the Raider Connect lobby. These

rooms are used to consult with students and/or parents who need more personalized help. They

are located in the middle of the main lobby, are glass enclosed and have a door that can be closed

for privacy. The female participant wore capris pants, a nice blouse and sandals. The interview

was conducted during a time when no clients were waiting to be seen. The interview began at

3:40 PM and lasted 5 minutes 10 seconds. Both structured interviews took place on Monday,

June 6, 2016. (5b)(iv)

 What I discovered during this process is that the lowest level of expectation the ESAs

have for students who come to be served is the following:

1. Read and understand the correspondence that has been sent to them, when applicable.

2. Have a basic understanding of how to access their student account.

3. Have viewed their financial aid award notice, including any additional requirements

that may be present.

4. Have proper identification when asking to make changes on their student account.

A concerning, recurring theme is the perceived lack of willingness on the part of the students to

help themselves. Each of the participants interviewed expressed concern that the students appear

to want everything done for them and take little or no initiative to grasp an understanding of what

is being required of them. The main concern is that the parental help they are being given is in

many ways preventing the growth and maturity of the students in learning how to negotiate their

personal affairs. (5b)(v)

One of the ways used to address credibility in this exercise was the use of peer

debriefing. Though it was done in advance, the instructor requested that our research question

and our interview guides be reviewed for approval before proceeding with the interview process.

The fact that my intended process was approved speaks to the fact that it was believed that the

results of the completed process would be credible. In addition, at the end of each interview I

used member checks to establish whether the participants had anything further to add to their

recorded statements. All interviews were recorded, however, as previously mentioned, I also

used a pen and note pad to make additional notes concerning the interviews. Triangulation is

present when more than one type of data collection is used as was in this case. Dependability in

this case is demonstrated by the fact that the interviews were conducted using an interview
question guide which could be easily replicated. In addition, the recorded interviews as well as

the written notes could be reviewed by others interested in pursuing this research question

further. Confirmability is established in that the recordings and notes taken could be reviewed

(audit trail) to recreate the interview process. Transferability was addressed in the thick

description of the details in the setting, location and attire of the participants. (5b)(vi)
 Exhibit 1

Structured Interview Guide

1. How long have you been in this position?

2. What is the basic information you expect a student to have when they come to Raider
Connect to be served?

3. What is the most difficult thing about working with students who come to Raider
Connect without a basic understanding of how you can help them?

4. What do you think should be done to educate students on what information to bring
when coming to Raider Connect to be served?
The Semi-Structured Interview Process

For the semi-structured interviews, I choose participants based on depth of knowledge of

collegiate customer service. The first participant in this type of interview is an Assistant Director.

She is of Hispanic descent and approximately 35 years of age. She holds a Master’s degree in

Student Affairs in Higher Education (SAHE) and is highly interested in student welfare. The

second participant was an African American female, approximately 50 years of age. Her prior

experience at university level customer service was in an Historically Black College and/or

University (HBCU) where she spent over 11 years in the Office of Financial Aid. It was hoped

that the use of the semi-structured interview process would reveal additional knowledge

concerning how the preparedness of Wright State students differ from students in other

universities and whether the knowledge base of the interviewees altered their expectations of the

students. (5b)(i)

The initial questions for the semi-structured interviews were the same as used for the

structured interview; however, I designed follow-up questions in order to allow the participants

to provide additional information concerning their backgrounds and opinions. The design of the

follow-up questions helped to facilitate a deeper level of discussion versus those used in the

structured interviews. The Semi-Structured Interview guide is provided as Exhibit 2. (5b)(ii)

As in the structured interview process, I used my iPhone to record both interviews and

participants were asked in advance if it was agreeable to them that I do so. Again, verbal consent

was provided. Pen and paper were used to capture additional data deemed useful for the analysis

of the interview results. (5b)(iii)

The interview for the Assistant Director took place in her office which is located in the

Raider Connect administrative offices in the rear of the Student Union Lobby. The offices are
behind the huddle rooms and are separated from the main lobby by glass doors, clearly marked

for employees only. The Assistant Director’s office is located along the back wall of the

administrative offices, is enclosed in glass and has a door which can be closed for privacy. The

respondent wore a sleeveless dress and sandals, enhanced by a decorative scarf. The interview

began at 1:30 PM and lasted 31 minutes 39 seconds. The second respondent interview took

place in the Recreation area on the lower level of the Student Union. Located in this space are

the climbing walls and the hand-ball courts. There is also an entertainment area located here,

complete with ping-pong tables, and a big-screen television with seating for students. Adjacent

to where the interview actually took place is the fitness center. At this time in the semester, this

area was deserted which allowed for uninterrupted conversation. The respondent wore a sun

dress with a matching sweater and jewelry and sandals. The interview began at 12:15 pm and

lasted 10 minutes 53 seconds. Both interviews were conducted on June 6, 2016. (5b)(iv)

The main themes of the semi-structured interviews were the same as those for the

structured interviews. Respondents stated that at the very least students demonstrate they have

done the following when coming to Raider Connect:

1. That students should at least have opened the emails or other correspondence
they receive.

2. That the students have a basic understanding of how to view their account
information.

3. That students have proper identification when trying to affect changes on their
accounts.

4. That students have a basic understanding of the content of their Financial Aid
Award Notice.

Of great concern with both respondents was that students seem to lack the drive or

interest to advocate in their own behalf. What remains unknown is why this generation of
students appear to be so detached from their futures. Respondent two of the semi-structured

interviews stated that many students possess an air of “entitlement”; however, are unwilling (she

does not believe that for the most part students are unable) to complete the tasks necessary to

claim what they believe they are owed. She also believes that the parental involvement in these

matters (helicopter parents) may be stifling student maturity. It may be interesting to do a study

on how parental intervention has affected student maturation.

A final theme that came from the Assistant Director was the concern that students who

come to Wright State from the less affluent feeder schools are not on a level playing field with

students who come from the more affluent public or private schools. An example given was that

a Valedictorian from the Dayton Public School system would not necessarily be as equally

educated as a Valedictorian from the Oakwood or Beavercreek school systems. However, the

University’s academic performance expectation of these two students are the same. As a result,

we see many of these students losing their scholarship eligibility due to Unsatisfactory Academic

Performance issues. This results in the students who can least afford it, losing the only financial

resource they have. She is trying to find a way to do some investigative work in this area to see

what can be done about this. (5b)(v)

In addition to having my questions approved by the professor, I discussed the questions

with my husband to see whether they made sense to someone not in higher education and if they

would elicit thoughtful responses from those being interviewed. This is another example of peer

debriefing. In addition, at the end of each interview I used member checks to establish whether

the participants had anything further to add to their recorded statements. In addition to the

recording instrument (iPhone), I also used a pen and note pad to make additional notes

concerning the interviews which is a triangulation method. Dependability was demonstrated by

the fact that the interviews were conducted using an interview question guide which could be

easily replicated and can be turned over for anyone to review. Confirmability is established in

that the recordings and notes taken could be reviewed (audit trail) to recreate the interview

process. Also, confirmability is present as respondents could be asked to recall their experience

in the interview process. Transferability was addressed in the thick description of the details in

the setting, location and attire of the participants. Credibility is also established by the

documentation of the recurring themes of all four participants. (5b)(vi)

 Exhibit 2

Semi-Structured Interview Guide

1. How long have you been in this position?

a. Have you been in positions similar to this at other universities?

b. Have you been in other customer service positions?

c. How does working in Raider Connect differ from previous positions?

2. What is the basic information you expect a student to have when they come to Raider
Connect to be served?

a. Do your expectations differ according to the students’ university level (freshman,

sophomore, junior, senior)?

b. What steps do you take to educate the student on how to become better prepared
on subsequent repeat visits?

c. Do you think this helps?

3. What is the most difficult thing about working with students who come to Raider
Connect without a basic understanding of how you can help them?

a. Why is this so difficult for you?

b. How would you change this?

4. What do you think could be done at the University level to educate students on what
information to bring when coming to Raider Connect to be served?

a. How would you go about this?

b. Who should be responsible for initiating this change?

Advantages and Disadvantages of Automated and Manual Data Collection

One advantage of using a recording device was that it allowed me to concentrate on the

interviewee. I could observe facial expressions and denote changes in tone of voice. I was also

able to determine what was going on around me that may have some effect on the progression of

the interviews. A disadvantage of using a recording device was that I was constantly worried that

all elements of the interview may not be present. I worried that the microphone wouldn’t pick up

the questions as they were asked or if I would be able to hear the response clearly upon playback.

I also was worried about whether or not the iPhone was even recording or if the entire

conversation would be erased accidentally!

I mentioned that I also used a pen and pad to take additional notes. The disadvantage of

the manual process was that I had to look at what I was writing, resulting in the loss of eye

contact from time to time of the person I was interviewing. The fear was that the person being

interviewed would think I was not listening and subsequently would not respond as fully as

desired. The other issue I had using manual data collection, was that many times during the

interviews I was so engrossed in the responses that I forgot to write down a quote or facial

expression that may have impacted the results of the interviews were they actually being use for

analysis. (5c)

Lessons Learned from the Assignment

I learned from this assignment that the ESAs interviewed had the same expectation level

as myself when dealing with students at the university level. Further, I leaned that, although

frustrations occur when dealing with students, the ESAs in Raider Connect truly care about
student welfare. Their main goal is to see students take an interest in their own educational

process as well has to have an enjoyable college experience. They know that in order to have a

successful outcome, students must be pro-active in the decision-making process pertaining to

their own futures. (5d)

Preferred Type of Interview

My preferred interview type is the automated type of data collection. As I said

previously, it frees me to observe other types of data that occur during the process. I can play

back the recording and remember how the respondent looked during a particular part of the

transcript. Also, I believe the eye-contact is very important. Using the automated type of

interview allowed me to make and keep eye-contact. To me, this made the interview seem more

like a conversation between peers, which also seemed to make the interviewee feel more at ease.

(5e)

Transcript of Recorded Semi-Structured Interview

Exhibit 3 is an excerpt from the recorded interview of the first respondent of the semi-

structured interview. The interview took place in the respondent’s office, located in the

administrative area of Raider Connect. This is an approximate 5 minute transcription of the

approximate 32 minute interview. The excerpt deals with question number 3 of the interview

questions.
 Exhibit 3

Transcript of Recorded Semi-Structured Interview

Interviewer: What is the most difficult thing about working with students who come to Raider

Connect without a basic understanding of how you can help them?

Respondent: “I think there are two things that come to mind immediately. One is traditional-age

parents who are trying to captain the ship of their collegiate students’ education. I absolutely

think families should actively be a part, and in many cultures, including my own, family is a part

of the collegiate experience. When you come you may bring grandma and grandpa. You know

its’ this person is going to college we are a family and we are proud. I absolutely respect that.

What I wish parents more readily would understand, not true of all cases certainly, is that they

want to be with their student but not doing everything for their student. So having those

conversations with parents about, as much as I appreciate that you are a part of it, we want to

have your student at the table because these are valuable, teachable life lessons. Ummm, he or

she may have a car loan. They may have a credit card someday that they are dealing with

payments. If God forbid something were to happen to the parent, would the student know how to

navigate, you know, their collegiate career if that were to God forbid occur? And there are times

when mom or dad aren’t gonna be able to come to Raider Connect or call Raider Connect and as

a student we want you to have the knowledge base of what’s going on. It is ultimately, at the end

of the day, it falls on the student’s shoulders. So that’s one thing that gets very difficult.
 The second thing I think is very difficult is families who simply at the end of the day

don’t have enough to come. That’s the hardest for me personally to see. I mean escalations and

people who are frustrated, for me I chalk that up as I don’t know what else is going on in their

life, just like they don’t know what is going on in my life. So it could be that they are having a

very bad day outside of this and I know nothing about it. Ummm, I just try to remain calm and

quiet and stick to the facts and help them in any way that I can; and sometimes the resolution that

I can provide is not ideal for their situation and they are not gonna be happy with anything that I

say and they want to speak to my supervisor. So I am pretty at peace with that ‘cuz I feel like at

the end of the day I give it everything that I have and at the end of the day that’s all you can do.”