Bad Internship? Good Learning Experience!

Every once in a while I hear a horror story about a bad internship. My first response is always, I wish I would have known earlier so I could have helped. But, regardless if the internship was positive or not there are always lessons to take away from that experience.

Supervisor preferences

Think about how you were managed at the internship. What did you like? What didn’t you like? If you could describe your ideal supervisor, how would he/she work and manage? Supervisors can make or break an internship experience. Remember when you interview for any job, even an internship, that you take time to ask them questions also.

Where your interests really lie

Maybe you just didn’t like the work. Consider what parts of the job duties you enjoyed the most and what you enjoyed the least. For the duties you enjoyed the least, ask youself, “Why?” What about those duties made them less appealing to you as a worker? The more you know about your interests at work, the more focused your job search will be, and more likely you’ll find a job that you enjoy.

Co-workers and environment preferences

What was the company culture like at the internship site? How were the co-workers and their relationships with you? These are good qualities to assess for internships and potential new jobs. You can tell a lot about the company by observing interactions, nonverbals, and verbal remarks during an internship. Ask yourself if it’s the type of place where you would like to become involved in the future or not.

Negotiation tactics

All good intern supervisors have the understanding that interns are there to learn and should have frequent meetings with his/her intern(s) to discuss progress, goals, and needs. By having successful discussions with your supervisor you can practice how to positively negotiate. Some suggestions for positive interactions would be to come prepared, do your research and be aware of the supervisor's style and preference. Take feedback seriously and do something with it so you can show how important learning is to you.

Even if you didn’t have a great internship experience, you’ve still walked away with a learning experience. That’s what internships are all about, learning. Don’t forget to reflect, write logs and journals, and talk to counselors or advisors about your experience. By reporting a poor experience to a university representative you’ll have a better chance of improving it, and also be able to gain an objective perspective on the internship experience.