Steps to develop and manage a successful internship program:
1. Determine the need and availability: consider these questions - What is the purpose of creating an internship program for your organization? Does your organization need additional help? Can you provide meaningful work assignments? Who will supervise and mentor the intern?
2. Write a position description: outline the responsibilities, projects the intern will be working on, skills that are required to apply, compensation (for undergraduate students, we generally see students are offered $18-23 per hour; for graduate students, it is $23-30, depending on the majors) and time commitment & duration of the internship (Typically 10-20 hours per week when students have full course loads and can be full-time when students take less courses or take a term off).
3. Recruit and hire: post positions on Handshake to reach students. Connect with the employer engagement team for additional support.
4. Provide orientation and review worksite policies: dress code, working hours, access to resources & equipment (we recommend providing laptops or other equipment required to do the work), introduction to co-workers and more.
5. Mentor your intern: develop a learning plan with the intern at the beginning. Schedule regular check-ins to ensure your expectations are met and the intern is learning from this experience. Consider providing the intern with a mentor that is someone other than their direct supervisor to enhance the learning experience.
6. Evaluate intern & provide feedback: besides regular check-ins and ongoing feedback, supervisors and/or mentors should provide evaluation and feedback to the intern at the end of the program. Consider using this evaluation form to get the conversation started.