College Courses in Retrospect

E MPLOYMENT interviewers try to ascertain the interests of the men who are applicants for positions. They ask about personal and family history, schools attended, books read, recreational and leisure-time activities, previous employment, travel, hobbies, membership in societies, and a host of other questions. When 6o college graduates were interviewed for employment in a large manufacturing concern, four special questions were included in each interview, and the answers were recorded by a stenographer. The 6o applicants were interviewed by one man. The four questions were: Of all the college courses you have which one have you enjoyed the most? Was that required or elective? Of all the college courses you have which one have you disliked the most? Was that required or elective? These questions usually were introduced in the middle of the interview for the purpose of exploring the interests of the applicants as indicated by reactions to subjects that had been studied. They were preceded by questions about different preparatory schools and colleges attended, summer-vacation activities, and reasons for selecting particular fields of study, such as engineering, chemistry, or business management. The size of the senior class to which the applicant belonged was ascertained, and questions concerning his relative scholastic standing in the class were asked. The comment, Now let's talk about some of the courses you have taken, was the signal for the stenographer to begin recording the applicant's remarks. She recorded the applicant's complete comments on the courses he had liked and disliked. One of the sixty interview reports is presented in its entirety. It has not been edited and is a fair sample of the results that were obtained by means of this method. Interview No. 49Interviewer: Of all the college courses you have which one have you enjoyed the most? Applicant: I think the course I enjoyed the most was probably social psychology because of the paper which I worked upon in the course. I went out in the field and interviewed the parents of fifty high-school students and interviewed the students and gave them tests. It was a studythese were selected high-school stu

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