A. Applicants

     Interview the editors of local broadcast stations and newspapers to see what they think of applicants for reporting jobs. Use some of the material from Exercises, A. Criticism and B. Galloway in this chapter as the basis of questions. Are there many applicants, more than in past years? How are they weeded out? If tests are given, how have the applicants fared?

B. Ratings

     Schools and departments of colleges and universities are accredited by various agencies called accrediting groups or accrediting agencies. Some organizations or individuals also rank professional schools. Dig out accreditation reports (which often cite areas for improvement) and ratings for your college or university. Interview students within the departments and schools, the deans or directors, faculty members and others for comments on the latest report.

C. Dates

     Valentine's Day brings out some strange stories in newspapers. One that is often plucked from the city editor's file sends out reporters to ask people, "What was your worst-ever date? What happened?" Try the questions on a few men and women.

D. Fantasies

     What do people eat when they want to indulge themselves? Some nominees: ice cream, candy, pie. Separate men and women and see whether there is a difference in selections.

E. Accountant

     Most people presume the life of an accountant is tedious and boring. Interview a local accountant about his or her work.

F. Music

     Interview the leader of one of the local music groups. What kind of music do people prefer these days? Is this a shift from past preferences? Do people prefer listening, dancing or both? Is the audience growing? Are there any all-female groups, female lead musicians?

G. Union

     Attitudes toward unions and union leaders rise and dip with the times. Lately, unions have been losing membership. Interview the head of a local union and ask for his or her assessment of public sentiment. Has this made the work of the union easier, more difficult? What is the history of a local union: when founded, membership totals, accomplishments, failures? What are its immediate and long-range goals?

H. Donations

     Interview the campus official who is in charge of raising money from private sources. How successful has the past year, half year or quarter been? What is the money being used for? Any plans for future fund drives for special purposes? Who, what are the big givers? Any change in giving patterns over the past few years?

I. Lawyer

     One of the problems criminal defendants with modest income face is their inability to hire a lawyer. Legal commentators say most lawyers turn away from trial law, preferring the more lucrative practice of corporate or business law. Locate a trial lawyer and discuss his or her work, its rewards, its liabilities.

J. Law Students

     Check the opinions and intentions of students in a law school or seniors in prelaw about the desirability of careers as trial lawyers. If a student is planning such a career, why? Those who say no, why not? Focus on two students, each representing different choices.

K. GP

     The general practitioner in medicine seems to be a rare species among professionals. Locate one and interview him or her. What are the rewards for such an arduous life? What does the doctor think of the future of general practice? Will it be overwhelmed by the trend toward medical specialties?

L. Med Students

     Interview several medical students about their career plans. Do any plan a small-town or general practice? Do their aspirations bear out the fear that the general practitioner and the small-town doctor will disappear? If so, do the students think that this is bad? What new fields of medicine do they see opening up for them in the future?

M. Cars React

     What is done, if anything, on your campus to students who own cars and receive financial aid? Are there any limitations on their activities; any proposals for limitations? Do any regents, trustees or workers in the financial aid office think there should be? Interview those who are involved in making financial aid policies.

N. Suspension React

     Interview school officials on the policies for suspension, hearings and appeal in use in the local public school system. Have they changed in recent years? What is the school administration's reaction to the policies? Teachers' reactions? Obtain data.

O. Styles

     Short skirts are back, says a headline of a trade newspaper. Interview local clothing merchants for the latest style trends in men's and women's clothing. Where will hems be next year at this time? Are stubby or pointed toes back for men's shoes? Is formal dress making a comeback?

P. E-Mail Interviews

     Conduct the following interviews by e-mail:
     1. For every two marriages, there is one divorce. Do religious leaders, sociologists, lawyers have any comments on this acceleration of divorce?
     2. As the result of school shootings, have high schools in the state taken any measures to increase security?
     3. College applications are increasingly being made online. Almost a third of applications are made this way, studies have shown. Some schools offer reduced fees to online applicants. What is the experience of schools in your state?
     4. Student guides are gaining in popularity. These student-written publications offer information about professors and their courses, often in a less-than-admiring tone. Some also present a sketch of campus life. Here are some samples of student guide comments about student life:
Smart to the point of geeky is what I expected and what I see—University of Chicago.
     Nine of the 10 girls in San Diego are pretty and the tenth goes to U.C.S.D.—University of California, San Diego.
     Weed falls from the sky.—New York University
For a school without a football team, we have a ton of really big and buff guys.—State University of New York, Binghamton
     For a mock student guide to your campus, interview students for comments about their courses, their instructors and their observations about student life. Write a news story based on your findings.