The college recruitment interview: Topical content and applicant reactions*

The present study investigated several issues concerning organizations' use of the campus interview for applicant evaluation and recruitment. Results indicated that: (1) recruiters showed little agreement on which topics should be covered in the interview; (2) individual recruiters failed consistently to cover topics they believed were important; (3) applicants reported the most frequently mentioned content dealt with non-academic issues of university life and extracurricular activities; (4) applicants reacted more favourably to interview content concerning general job qualifications. Implications of the findings for recruitment interview effectiveness are discussed.