Preparation for the Interview:
As an international student, I chose the Unite States of America as the country of choice for this interview. We had general questions that we drafted as a class, but I added and edited some questions so that they could fit my environment of interview. The USA is a large country consisting of several states. I will have to choose one state that will be my basis of interview. I choose to do the interview in the city of Saint Cloud to interview a number of people. At the end of this report is a transcript of one of the interviews with an American citizen who lives and works in the city of Saint Cloud. America is a vast democratic land that is full of people with different backgrounds. There are people of different origins such as Blacks, Whites, Latinos and a host of other diverse societies. These societies interact on a daily basis producing the most powerful nation in the modern world.
The USA now has a Black president. This shows that racism and ethnicity have slowly declined in the country. However, many challenges continue to rock it. The affected areas are the economy, society, health and infrastructure as well as employment. This interview is aimed at finding out how the interviewee copes with the current state of the country. What their opinion about everything in the society affecting him or her. Through this interview, I will be able to gain experience with the field of interviews. I will also be able to reflect on the experiences of the interviewee and draw conclusions regarding their standard of livelihood.
How did you approach people?
As an international student, I had contact with many students from the USA. One of my classmates introduced me to a longtime friend of his called Michael agreed to be interviewed. He told me that it was the first time he was doing this. He was obliged to chip in with my Interview. I told him that the interview was for my class work and that I would ask him general questions and that, I would record our conversion. He wanted to know why I wanted to record the conversation and I told him that it was for transcription purposes. He promptly agreed to go ahead with the interview. We met at the library. It is here that we conducted the interview.
When, where and how did you conduct and record the interview?
Whom did you Interview?
I interviewed Michael who is a longtime friend to one of my classmates. He is 24 years old of age and is a student at our campus. Michael was born and raised in Saint Cloud. He travelled within America with his family while growing up. This was before his parents ended up settling in Saint Cloud. It was after clearing his High school in this city that Michael joined our campus.
Interview Report
Arriving at his residence, Michael warmly welcomed me to his room. We spoke casually about our friends. I was surprised to realize that we share two other friends from our campus. After the chitchat, he directed me to the study room. The venue of the interview was a neat room that was well arranged with a diverse type of books on the shelves. It is at this point that I realized that Michael read many books. He was able to describe each book briefly. Each time I picked a book he had something to say about it.
I was surprised by the fact that Americans have an industrious spirit. The education sector was well funded and supported in this country. This has contributed greatly to the development of the country. I was also surprised by the levels of insecurity in the country. There are gangs that mainly deal in drugs. This is the ugly side of theUSA that was revealed to me. I soon realized that while the government was fighting terror abroad, some of the most biting issues were in their backyard.
Country Report:
The USA
The United States of America (USA or U.S.A.), commonly referred to as the United States (US or U.S.), America, or simply the States, is a federal republic consisting of 50 states, 16 territories, and a federal district. The 48 contiguous states and the federal district of Washington, D.C. are in central North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is the northwestern part of North America, west of Canada and east of Russia, which is across the Bering Strait in Asia, and the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-North Pacific. The country also has five populated and nine unpopulated territories in the Pacific and the Caribbean.
At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km2) in total and with around 316 million people, the United States is the fourth-largest country in total area, the fifth largest in the contiguous area and third in population. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. The geography and climate of the U.S. is also extremely diverse, with deserts, plains, forests, and mountains that are home to a wide variety of wildlife.
The United States is a developed country and has the world's largest national economy. The U.S. has the fourth most unequal income distribution among OECD nations with roughly 16% of the population living in poverty, including close to 20% of American children. The economy is fueled by an abundance of natural resources, a well-developed infrastructure, and high productivity; and while its economy is considered post-industrial the US continues to be one of the world's largest manufacturers. The country accounts for 39% of global military spending, being the foremost economic and military power, a prominent political and cultural force in the world, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovation.
The United States is a multicultural nation, home to a wide variety of ethnic groups, traditions, and values. Aside from the relatively small Native American and Native Hawaiian populations, nearly all Americans or their ancestors settled or immigrated within the past five centuries. Mainstream American culture is a Western culture largely derived from the traditions of European immigrants with influences from many other sources, such as traditions brought by slaves from Africa. More recent immigration from Asia and especially Latin America has added to a cultural mix that has been described as both a homogenizing melting pot, and a heterogeneous salad bowl in which immigrants and their descendants retain distinctive cultural characteristics.
(1)
The city of Saint Cloud, where I conducted the interview is the hometown of Michael. The city is known by the University of Saint Cloud. Many people come to Saint Cloud to study at the University of Saint Cloud.
Interview
Interviewer: Zaid Bugshan
Interviewee: Michael
Location: Michael's home
Z- Zaid (student)
M: Michael
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Z- First, I would like to thank you for your time this morning for let me do the interview with you.
M- That's Ok. I am glad to hear from you.
Z- Could you tell me about yourself? (Your name, home country)?
M- My name is Clair. My home country is USA. It is here that I was born and raised.
Z- Do you like the weather in St. Cloud? Please explain.
M- Actually I do not like the winter weather in St. Cloud, but I do like the spring and summer, Because in winter the weather in too cold and harsh, so we cannot do any outdoor activities, but the contrary in spring and summer.
Z- What do you do for leisure?
M- Leisure time is a necessary thing to lead a healthy happy life. It enables us to recover our lost energy. I spend my leisure time by enjoying and doing many things. I play football, and many other games and sports. I also spend my leisure time by reading books, watching TV and listening music.
Z- How often do you communicate with your family back at home?
M-Actually we live in a same city, so see each other daily.
Z- What are your goals for the future; after you graduate, what are you going to do?
M- I plan to get employed in my home town in the USA.
Z- Why did you choose to study at St. Cloud University?
M- Their vision, mission and goals resonated with me.
Z- Would you like to tell me about your country history?
M- The USA is a country that has many people of different original homes. This is both our strength and weakness. It has resulted into good competition and bad blood at the same time.
Z- In what ways might it be difficult to practice your religion here in the U.S?
M- As an American, I think there are no any ways might it be difficult to practice your religion in the U.S, because America is a freedom country and there are a lot of different religions and people from many different countries around the world live in U.S.A.
Z- Can you tell me about activities that young people like to do in your country?
M- Young people in The USA are mainly involved in contemporary art, music and technological stuff.
Z- What is the biggest holiday in your country? Please explain about the holidays (Activities, Food, Date, Origin, and etc,)
M- Some of the major holidays include Memorial Day, Independence Day, Easter, Columbus Day, and Thanks Giving.
Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Several other places around the world observe similar celebrations. It is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States .Thanksgiving has its historical roots in religious and cultural traditions. Turkey is a special food at that day
Z- Tell me some important things from your culture?
M- America has a lot of important things in the culture, but I will tell you about the holidays in the USA. The United States observes holidays derived from events in American history. For example, Thanksgiving, and Independence Day, and Halloween. Also, the American culture has something important for American it's the sports such as American football and Basketball.
American football, known in the United States as simply "football", now attracts more television viewers than any other sport and is considered to be the most popular sport in the United States.
Basketball is another major sport, represented professionally by the National Basketball Association.
Z- What’s the biggest difference between the American culture and your culture?
M- We are more of a modern diverse culture unlike other cultures that are intrinsic.
Z- Is there anything you would like to add before we end our interview?
M- Am proud to be American!
Z- Do you have any questions for me, now that I have had the pleasure of asking you about so many things?
M- I don’t have questions really, just a suggestion. Make sure this interview is published.
Z- I will do my best. Thank you and I appreciate that. It was nice to meet you
M- Nice to meet you too
Work Cited:
(1) http://www.factoryoutletstores.info/outlet-malls-by-map-of-usa/
(2) http://www.mnscu.edu/collegesearch/index.php/institution/profile/0073
(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States
(4) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_the_United_States
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