At YEA, we talk a lot about internships.
How we think they should be paid, how we think they should be integrated into your department, how they should be about learning not menial labor, how they should be a mentorship situation, etc.
I can across this great post from Heather Huhman titled Making the Most Out of Internships, on SmartBlog on Leadership. It hold a lot of what we have been discussing for a long time, she just says it better than we ever have! A little teaser below:
Every organization is different, so there is no one-size-fits-all answer here. However, I do outline specific characteristics of a good internship in Chapter 3 — including making sure interns receive real assignments and projects, have an opportunity to be mentored and network with other professionals, walk away with references and recommendations, etc. — and how to create a good internship program in Chapter 4, starting with an analysis of exactly how both the company and the intern will benefit from the arrangement and how mentorship will be woven into the program.
