If your organization has never offered a co-op or internship program or if your program could use an overhaul, the following steps and recommendations can help you get started.
Step 1: Establish Goals
What does your organization hope to achieve from your co-op or internship program?
- Are you a small organization searching for additional help on a project?
- Is your organization growing quickly and having difficulty finding motivated new employees?
- Are you an organization that doesn’t have a lot of money to pay but can provide an interesting and rewarding experience?
- Does your organization want to identify potential sources of future talent and try out potential future employees?
A careful discussion with management can create a consensus on program goals that can be understood by all involved. The co-op/internship program can be designed to best meet those expectations. As many staffing professionals know, in order for a program to be successful, it will require the commitment of management.
Step 2: Write a Plan
Carefully plan and write out your co-op/internship program and goals. Draft a position description that clearly explains the job duties and includes learning outcomes/goals. Do you want someone for a specific project? What about general support around the workplace? How about giving the co-op/intern a taste of everything your company does? Structure the program ahead of time so that you can be sure to meet your goals and not find yourself floundering partway through. Here are some things you should consider:
- How much will you pay the co-op/intern?
- Where will you put the co-op/intern?
- What sort of academic background and experience do you want in a co-op/intern?
- Who will have the primary responsibility for the co-op/intern?
- What will the co-op/intern be doing?
- Do you want to plan a program beyond the work you give your co-op/interns?
Step 3: Recruiting
How will you find those ideal candidates to fill your co-op/internship position(s)? The number one tip from those who have established programs is to get out there early! This cannot be overemphasized to organizations that want the very best interns. Begin searching three to four months before you need a student to begin. Some industries have even more advanced timelines and hire summer co-ops or interns by October. Starting early has other advantages: the longer you accept applications, the better your chance of finding the best person for the job. The sooner you get one, the longer you have to form a good working relationship with the student.
Step 4: Managing the Co-op or Intern Student
Once you’ve hired a co-op/intern student, you put them to work, right? That’s true for student co-ops/interns, as well as regular employees, but with students, you’ll be making an important first impression. The beginning days of the co-op/internship experience are often its defining days. When you give them their first tasks, you’re signaling what can be expected in the future. If you give them nothing or very little to do, it sends a message that this job will be easy—and boring. Students don’t want that; of course, neither do employers. The organization of your co-op/internship program will probably be the single most important influence on a student’s impression of your organization, and thus increase the chances that he or she will come back. So how do you “plan for success?” Consider the goals of your program. The nature of the program and the activities that you choose to undertake should directly relate to your program goals.
First, orient your co-op/intern to his or her new workplace. This might take the form of a conventional orientation program or merely a walk around the office, depending on the size of your company. After all, even though they may not be permanent employees, they’ll be spending a great deal of time in your workplace. Give the co-op/interns an overview of your organization; some companies give talks or hand out information about the company’s history, vision, and services. Explain who does what and what the co-op/intern’s duties will be. Introduce him or her to co-workers and give them a complete tour of the facility. Making your co-op/intern at home in the office is your first step to bringing him or her back.
Give your co-op/intern the resources he or she needs to do the job. That may sound obvious, but you’d be surprised at how many companies stick their co-ops/interns out in an out-of-the way room or transfer them from desk to desk. That sends a potent message: co-ops/interns aren’t important; we don’t want you here. Give the co-op/intern a desk and show them where to get needed supplies. If you intimidate your co-op/interns into silence, you could miss out on valuable contributions to your projects—or warnings about impending problems.
Keep an eye on the co-op/intern. This doesn’t mean watching their every move but do make sure you know what’s happening with their daily tasks. Watch for signs that they are confused or bored. As often as silence means that a co-op/intern is busy, it also could mean that he or she is confused and shy about telling you. It’s easy to be shy in a workplace full of strangers who all know each other. See whether they are trying to do anything that requires someone else’s input. Make sure that work is taking precedence over web browsing or texting friends. Paying attention early helps you head off problems and bad habits.
Give them lots of feedback! Especially if your co-ops/interns have never done this kind of work before, they’ll want to know if their work is measuring up to your expectations. No matter what the level of experience, they need you, as a more experienced worker, to let them know if their work is officially “okay.” Periodically, examine what your co-op/intern has produced and make suggestions.
Step 5: Evaluate the Co-op/Intern Student
Remember those goals you outlined before? A few weeks after the co-op/internship begins, it’s time to see how well you and your student are meeting those goals. Evaluation processes differ. Yours might be as formal as written evaluations every three weeks or as informal as occasional lunches with the co-op/internship coordinator and/or their mentor. Some companies have the student evaluate the experience and the company as well. Again, your structure is largely up to your organization’s culture and needs.
As an added bonus, these evaluations will be handy later if you decide to interview a former co-op/intern for full-time work, or to publicize how successful your program has been. Consider using the NACE Career Readiness Competencies to evaluate your student co-op/interns and employees.
Step 6: Reflect on the Co-op or Internship Program
Maintaining program popularity will require hard evidence that your organization is getting a return on its investment. Some organizations have adopted a process of formal exit interviews. Through this process they can determine if co-ops/interns are leaving the company having had a good experience, and it provides valuable feedback to managers for program planning in the following year.
In addition to qualitative measures, a number of quantitative measures should be adopted. Some common measures include the number of interns that become full-time employees, repeat requests for interns from managers, and growing numbers of co-op/intern applicants. In order to successfully measure your own program outcome, you should return to the stated program goals and address those outcomes.