How to Start an Internship Program

Meet Your Facilitator Basics: Briana Randall Director Internship Project Career & Internship Center Details: 13 years in center 2 years in this role Goal ensuring UW students have access to high-quality internships Factoid: Did an internship at the Indiana Women s Prison Contact: brianakr@uw.edu (206) 685-4139

Agenda > Explore > Establish > Engage > Wrap-up

Explore

Definition > A form of experiential learning that allows a student to do one or more of the following: Integrate academic learning with hands-on experience Develop or refine specific skills that are transferable to other settings Explore a career interest

Distinction > Internships have a significant and intentional focus on student learning Should not simply advance operations of the employer or replace an employee Should center around learning objectives related to the intern s academic/career goals Should involve frequent feedback on performance

Distinction (cont.) > Internships are often project-based > Internships typically have a defined end date > Internships can be life-changing

Why Hire Interns? > Fresh perspective / ideas > Innovative attitude / creative > Energy / enthusiasm > Eager to learn > Want to make a difference

Why Hire Interns? > Mutual learning teaching someone is a great way to learn or relearn something yourself > Mentoring it s a pleasure to help them navigate the company and learn how to be successful in their careers knowing we can help them grow professionally is amazing! Quotes from Jan 2016 Internship Best Practices workshop attendees

Why Hire Interns? > Interns know how to reach younger audiences > They can make substantial contributions to organizational missions and goals > Build a pipeline for future hiring In a national employer survey* (mostly corporations): > 67.1% offer rate (asking interns to stay on) > 76.4% acceptance rate (interns agreeing to stay on) * From NACE 2017 Internship & Co-Op Survey

Typical Specs > Most UW students intern ~ 10 wks 10 > During academic year, interns typically work 10-20 hours per week > During summer, they sometimes want up to 40 15 40

Typical Specs > UW - quarter system Sept 27 Dec 15, 2017 Jan 3 Mar 16, 2018 Mar 26 June 8, 2018 June 18 Aug 17, 2018 > 10 weeks of classes + 1 week of finals

Typical Specs > For summer internships Accounting, finance, consulting, some tech Oct/Nov Other areas > Most students start thinking more seriously about summer internships in Jan/Feb, even March/April > Growing attendance at February Internship Fair > For other parts of the year Students look 1-3 months in advance

Compensation > Helps ensure students from all backgrounds have access to internships broadly, and to your position > Increases investment of all involved > Helps employers stay competitive 83% of internships in HuskyJobs are paid Paid internships, 42 apps; Unpaid internships, 9 apps > Helps ensure that for-profit employers are in compliance w/ federal guidelines

Compensation > Credit is awarded for demonstrating the learning that takes place in internships, typically through structured assignments Credit is NOT compensation > Wages are compensation for work completed at an internship site > Students pay money to earn internship credits

Academic Credit > Most students do not choose to earn credit > Students initiate the process > Once intern is selected and registers for credit, the employer usually needs to sign a form or two in the beginning and in the end

Resource Highlight

Establish

Answer Big Picture Questions > What are you trying to accomplish? > Would an internship program fit your org culture? > How much support would an intern program get from various levels in your org? > Who s in charge of the internship program?

Establish Manager Expectations > Who will be allowed to serve as intern managers? > What will be expected of managers? Tasks, time commitment, timeline > Will there be common expectations among different intern managers? > How will intern performance be evaluated?

Identify Possible Managers > Interest in supporting intern learning > Skill in supervising others > Willing to set aside time: Recruiting / selection Onboarding / goal-setting Weekly project check-ins Mid-point performance mtg Final performance review

Identify Possible Projects > Important to the organization > Meaningful for an intern Allows for skill development Involves interaction with others > Reasonable for an intern s: Level of experience Weekly and total hours

Think Through Intern Logistics > Intern work space > Intern equipment/supplies > Likely total hours needed Minimum # hrs per week? Minimum # of weeks? > Permanent hire conversion Expectations Process Communication

Resource Highlights

Engage

Build Recruiting Timeline > Desired intern start date > Offer date > Interviews > Applications due > Position description posted > Position description drafted, reviewed, finalized > Project identified and described > Manager identified & coached

Think About Target Audience > Realistic / conscientious / strategic > Want to contribute / innovate > Desire to be coached / grow / learn > Highly prefer in-person communication > Value honesty / integrity / authenticity > Value social responsibility / involvement

Think About Target Audience > What attributes would help interns be successful? > What skills does one really need coming in? > Think broadly about majors > How can you appeal and market to diverse groups?

Write Position Description > Sell your organization > Describe the role > List requirements > Give app. instructions

Write Position Description > Describe what interns will learn What You Will Learn Interns Will Develop Skills In You Will Gain Experience In How You Will Benefit > Ask interns to include a few ideas about what they d like to learn in their cover letter

Write Position Description > Approximate start and end dates > Number of hours per week > Location of internship site > Compensation (wage, or whether its paid/unpaid)

Create Recruiting Plan > Ask employees to push it out > Post to social media > Post to niche industry websites and listserves > Post to national sites idealist.org wayup.com internships.com

Connect with Huskies > Post on HuskyJobs $35, for-profit employers $10, other employers careers.uw.edu/post-a-job/ > Connect with targeted student groups and depts. Academic areas, cultural groups, political, hobbies, etc. Find a group and send an email depts.washington.edu/thehub/sao/

Connect with Huskies > Attend a Fair Large, all major fairs Large, college-level fairs Smaller, niche industry fairs careers.uw.edu/employers/calendar > Conduct On-Campus Interviews

Design a High-Impact Internship > Onboarding > Learning > Engagement > Projects > Relationships > Exposure > Feedback > Reflection

Resource Highlights

Wrap-Up

Resources > Internship info / consultations careers.uw.edu/employers/create-an-internship/ brianakr@uw.edu > Employer engagement info / consultations careers.uw.edu/employers/ careers.uw.edu/employer-education-workshops/ econeill@uw.edu

Resources > Career Center @ Engineering engr.uw.edu/careercenter > Foster School of Business Undergraduate & Specialty Master s Career Services foster.uw.edu/careers/careerservices/employers/

Resources

How to Start an Internship Program