1. Plan ahead since most specialists are busy and you will need time to make contact, set up the interview, and review your notes.
• Most organizations and agencies have a public information contact to help you identify an official spokesperson or an appropriate specialist.
• A college or university professor who specializes in the field you are investigating might be able to recommend an appropriate interview subject for your topic or might be appropriate as the interview subject.
2. Contact the person well in advance to find out whether you will be granted an interview.
   • Tell the person exactly what your purpose is and offer to give the person a copy of the finished essay if he or she would like it.
   • Also, estimate how much time the interview will take so you can reassure a busy person that you aren't interfering with work.
   • Have one or two alternative interviewees in mind if your first choice doesn't work out.
3. Prepare your interview questions, at least six for most topics, but the actual number must always depend on the situation. Your advance preparation will make the interview process more comfortable.
• Give a typed copy of the questions to the interviewee as a courtesy. Some people may even request or require that you submit the questions in advance.
• Invite the interviewee to give additional information and insights beyond your questions.
4. If possible, arrange for the interview to be held where the person lives or works so you can get a sense of the details of his or her life and work. While there, look for telling details in choice of photographs, furnishings, decorations, books, anything that helps reveal work habits or personal preferences.
   • Use a tape recorder only if you have received permission in advance. Even with a recorder, you should take prolific and detailed notes.
   • If a personal interview is not possible, interview by telephone or other technology, for example, email or videoconference. Even in a phone interview, take careful notes. Listen for voice tone since you don't have facial expressions or body movement to observe.
   • When you interview an expert, specialist, or professional, present yourself as a serious researcher.
     • Be punctual: plan to arrive a little early so you won't be late.
     • Write down and give the interviewee your name and contact information such as telephone number and email address.
     • Dress appropriately. A business suit would not usually be expected of a college student but would be okay if you prefer. Wear clean casual attire — not tee shirts, jeans, or atheletic-style clothing or accessories. On the other hand, if you're interviewing a surfing champion on the beach, shorts and a tee shirt might be appropriate. Even your attire should be based on rhetorical factors.
     • For telephone and email interviews, use language appropriate to the context, neither too formal nor too casual. Their confidence in you will be based on your words alone.
5. If you plan to quote word for word, ask the person politely to repeat what was just said. Take time to get the exact words of noteworthy statements. Place quotation marks in your notes around only the exact words of the subject. Ask for permission to quote him or her.
6. Make sure you have recorded the date, location, and correct spelling of the person's name and their exact position, title, rank, and other credentials.
7. Review your interview notes immediately after the interview and write down all your reflections so you won't forget them.
8. Send the person a brief note of thanks.
9. For credibility, you must include the interview subject's credentials within your composition and in the Works Cited listing to ensure that readers are aware of the person's expertise.
10. Be prepared to turn in your interview questions and notes and a copy of your note of thanks with your research project if requested.

Within Your Text: MLA Parenthetical In-text Citation Examples

Do not refer to the interview itself unless the project expects you to do so. Focus on the authority of the person and the quality of the information, not on the interview itself. You can paraphrase, quote, or combine paraphrase with quotation.

• Avoid statements like this one:
  • I interviewed I.M. Sage on May 12, 2000, and asked if English 111 students should be required to conduct academic research and Sage responded that they should if they want "to earn college degrees" “and make lots of money.”
• Instead, present the interview results like this:
  • I.M. Sage, Professor of Advanced Economics and Education at State University, stressed in 2000 that English 111 students should be required to conduct academic research if they want "to earn college degrees" and "make lots of money.”

Paraphrase

According to I.M. Sage, Professor of Advanced Economics and Education at State University, email messages represent a new communication model.

Quotation

"Because comma placement has determined the outcome of several court cases, students and professionals should not underestimate the importance of correct punctuation," said Chris Wise, Executive Director of the Comma Constabulary.

Combined Paraphrase and Quotation

Kelly Suarez, author of Semicolons and Semiconductors, describes the dreaded comma splice as "a blight on contemporary sentence meaning" and encourages Americans to adopt the British model of punctuation.

At the End: MLA Works Cited Examples

Note that the following examples include the credentials of the person interviewed. In a word processed document, Works Cited entries must each be formatted as double spaced with a hanging indent and a period at the end. If you don't know how to format a hanging indent, check the Help files of your word processor.