Oral History (A How-To Guide): Interview Preparation

1.  Create an interview guide.

   • Develop interview questions to be used for all narrators in the project, called an interview guide.

2.  Recruit narrators.

   • Contact possible narrators via letter or email. Describe the project and topics of interest and attach project information sheet. Share your contact information and offer to answer questions.

3.  Select recording equipment and interview location.

   • Remote interviews: Zoom works well for remote interviews and will record m4a files of the audio and the video. See the Recording Zoom - Help Center.

   • In-person interviews: DePaul University Library has recording devices available to borrow at the Access Services desk. There are also group study rooms, media rooms, and conference rooms available to reserve.

   • Visit the interview location to see that the environment is quiet enough for recording and test your recording setup.

4.  Prepare for the interview.

   • A pre-interview—an informal interview with the narrator prior to the recorded interview—can be very useful.

   • Research your narrator and add some narrator-specific questions to your interview guide.

   • Send a reminder to the narrator a day or two before the interview, reminding them of location and time of the interview.

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