Internship Requirements

• Job experience; meaningful work assignments related to field of study
• Exposure to real-world scenarios in the workplace
• Experience complements theoretical knowledge learned in the classroom
• Receive academic credit; some degrees require an internship for graduation
• Competitive compensation and benefits package
• Professional, social and volunteer activities for networking
• Commitment and assignment management
• Helps student build resume
• Recruiting, assessment and selection experience
• Orientation and assimilation
• Career development and performance management
• Mentoring and coaching; training and development
• To help the business community; good public relations
• Senior conversion into full-time position

• Hours required on-site for the Internship:  The schedule should be mutually agreed upon either in the interview process, after the job offer, or during the first week on the job.  A start and end date should be clear with the end date negotiable between the student and the organization.  Creighton University Health Administration Program?s internship requires students work 100 hours during the internship to receive three hours of academic credit.
• Time Off and Breaks:  Like any employee, personal time off for emergencies or sickness will happen.  Students are expected to notify the supervisor in advance of any time off needed.  The student should arrange with the supervisor to make-up any missed hours.  Creighton University students observe both a Fall and Spring Break.  Students should not be required to work during the weeks of Fall or Spring Break or during holiday breaks.  A Calendar of Events can be found on Creighton University's website, www.creighton.edu.
• Doing Coursework at the Site:  Students should not expect nor request time to complete coursework during working hours.
• Appropriate Business Attire:  Students are expected to adhere to the dress code of the organization.  The supervisor should share this policy and expectations with the student before the first day of the internship.
• Professionalism:  We expect our students to behave in a professional and responsible manner.  If your intern does not meet your expectations, we strongly encourage you to provide specific feedback outlining areas for improvement.

(Source: Vanderbilt University Human & Organizational Development Program Handbook for Supervisors)

• Involve the interns in planning their projects and tasks.  Solicit feedback from them and encourage them to discuss ideas with you.
• Balance the amount of administrative work and direct-service work given to the intern.
• Give your interns challenging tasks with the understanding that they should ask questions and seek assistance as they need it.  
• Create tasks and projects that have a clear beginning and end.  This allows interns to gain a sense of accomplishment and allows them to visualize the larger picture.
• Rotate interns' tasks or provide for a variety of tasks within a given project.  This allows for a more well-rounded internship.
• Assign tasks and projects that allow interns to gain an overview of the non-profit sector by interacting with other agencies in the community.
• Encourage interns to participate in any staff training or professional development activities you offer your staff.
• Treat interns as members of your staff.  When appropriate, allow them to attend staff meetings and events.
• Involve other staff members in training interns or suggesting possible projects for them to work on.  
• Always provide immediate feedback (positive and constructive) when interns complete tasks and projects. 

• Interns learn best when they receive immediate feedback regarding areas in which they excel and areas in which they need improvement.  It is a good idea to schedule a regular meeting with your intern to discuss his or her performance and changes in goals or activities.  For many interns, this internship experience will be their introduction to the world of work.  These interns might need specific feedback regarding professional skills and competencies.  
• Evaluations provide a way to give the student constructive feedback for growth and development throughout the internship.  Please make your feedback as specific as possible and cite specific examples of the intern's performance. Your intern will provide you with the evaluation forms.  Please feel free to modify the form for your utilization or use an internal performance evaluation form from your own organization.     
• Evaluations can be done at the discretion of the employer, but it is recommended an evaluation should be completed halfway through the internship and again at the end of the internship.  
• When you have completed the evaluation form, please schedule a meeting with your intern to discuss your assessment.  The meeting allows both you and your intern to clarify particular aspects of performance and develop a strategy for performance improvement.