Health and Human Services Professional Development

Top 3 Mistakes Students Make in their Internships by   Elissa Mitchell   on   July 2, 2013   Top 3 mistakes students make in their internships:  1. Not taking enough initiative Once you’ve been on the job for a while you should be able to work independently on projects without asking for too much direction from your supervisor. Of course, you should check in with your supervisor on a regular basis and make sure you’re on the same page, but you’re there to help with the work load, not create more work (and believe me, supervising an intern is work). 2. Acting like an expert The reverse of the first point is that you take too much initiative without input from your supervisor and strike out on your own – but in the wrong direction. I’ve had internship supervisors complain that their students’ sometimes need to learn when to act and when to step back; when to speak and when to listen. Yes, you may have completed all your coursework and you may even h...

What is the “Right” Internship? by   Elissa Mitchell   on   July 4, 2013   You may have seen articles or heard your professors talk about securing the right internship. But what does that really mean? It’s different for everyone, but here are a few important points to consider when deciding whether an internship is the “right” one. It provides you the opportunity to learn new skills.  The point of an internship is to learn new things – about a career, about an agency, about you. Your internship should be a safe space for you to try new things and get feedback and advice from your supervisors. An internship that doesn’t get you outside your box a little to experience new things most likely isn’t the “right” one. It lets you use your existing skills.  For some organizations, especially non-profits, interns are a great way to get free labor. Finding an intern with great technology skills, for example, saves an agency from paying someone to redo thei...

Making the Most of Your Internship Experience by   Elissa Mitchell   on   July 10, 2013   How can you make the most of your internship experience? Agree on a work plan.  Before you start your first day or work, you should know what you’ll be doing. Maybe not exactly, but you should have a good idea. Talk with your supervisor in advance about the types of things you want to experience, what the site has to offer, and the projects they want you to work on. Get it in writing and make sure both you and your supervisor understand and agree with it. A learning contract, as it’s sometimes called, makes things a little more formal and gives you something to go back to if you get stuck making copies every day.  “Remember those projects we talked about me working on? Could I work on one of those today?” Get out of your comfort zone.  It can be tempting to just use your existing skills in your internship or to answer the phone and file paperwork all da...

Finding an Internship by   Elissa Mitchell   on   July 11, 2013 Completing an internship during your degree program is often a great way to get hands-on experience in a structured learning environment While some lucky students (or unlucky, depending on how you view it….) are automatically placed into internships by their programs, most students must take some initiative if they want to find an internship before graduating. If your program has an internship course : Many schools that offer internship programs or courses have requirements for those courses. For example, some require that you complete your core coursework (and have a grade average of a ‘B’ or higher) to participate. Others want you to work with the instructor to secure a placement  before  actually enrolling in the course. Some programs only allow internships for seniors; others include younger students as well. Be sure to  start early and examine the requirements for your program ...

The Realities of Internships by   Elissa Mitchell   on   February 9, 2014 This comic ( http://mashable.com/2014/01/08/internships-comic/ ) from mashable.com highlights the lofty expectations of some new interns and the realities that often find them. Sure, you want to have high expectations of your position and hope that it will work out for the best. However, in reality, your internship may not live up to these expectations. Remember that you’re there for the learning experience and to keep a positive attitude. You never know where it might take you! *Originally posted on the Career Skillet website (Permission granted by Jill Bowers).