University of Manchester Careers Blog

“What do you think of these new shoes I’ve just bought?”
“What do you reckon to that goal I scored, eh?”
“Does my bum look big in this?”

– all questions asking for feedback where the last thing you really want is the truth.

But what if the questions on your mind are:

“How did that presentation really come across?”
“What did you think of the latest draft of the chapter I emailed to you last week?”
“Can I have some feedback on how I performed in the interview?”

It’s hard to get others to give you honest feedback unless you consider:

• Why you want feedback
• What kind of feedback you want
• Who could give you feedback
• How to ask for feedback
• How to react to feedback

That’s a bit too much to cover in one blog post, so here’s a handout I’ve written, covering all those topics, plus hints on how to take the first steps in getting more, and more useful, feedback:

• Asking For Feedback (pdf)

If you read it, whether you’re one of our postgrads or anyone else, I’d be interested in any feedback to help improve the advice and make sure it’s relevant. For example:

• Is it clear?
• Does it cover things which are of concern to you?
• Is the tone right?
• Are there any typos?

Just leave a comment if you’ve got any feedback.