As previously discussed on TheProfessionalEngineer.com, there are many benefits for the aspiring professional engineer to participate in a summer internship program.  From the employer’s perspective there are also benefits.  However there are several things to keep in mind to run a successful engineering internship program.

There will likely be two key people that will play important role in making the program work well - the Manager and the Mentor.  Human Resource / Personnel staff will also play an important role, but usually this may only be at the beginning and end of the internship interval.

The Manager’s Role

• Ultimately responsible for company’s side of matters
  • Assignment
  • Environment
  • Logistics
• Difficult to handle
  • Short timeframe (~10 weeks)
  • Balancing work priorities, schedules, vacations
  • Diverse background & experience
• Work closely with Mentor to ensure good relationships
• Assess & provide feedback on intern performance
• Create a “win-win” situation

The Mentor’s Role

• Help the intern put the picture “in focus”
• Help in skill development
• Point the intern toward key information resources
• Help the intern successfully accomplish the assignment
  • Provide input but do not do the job
• Provide academic and career guidance
• Assist in building confidence
• Attentiveness & flexibility are absolutely necessary

Pre-Arrival Preparation

• Coach should select and meet with mentor
• Define, plan, and document assignment
• Review the intern’s background
• Contact the intern before they arrive
• Negotiate logistics
• Check with HR on any company specific tasks

Assignment Attributes

• Should be meaningful & beneficial
• Should be challenging to the intern
• Has well defined and logical benchmarks
• Allows some independent work by the intern
• Allows interaction with the group / department
• Includes a presentation by the intern to the group / department
• Includes documentation by the intern of the work accomplished
• Provides ample opportunity for feedback

Technical Orientation (to be provided when the intern arrives)

• Organization
  • Overview of technical organization & structure
  • Goals of the organization
  • Synopsis of various projects within the organization
  • Explanation of organizational interfaces
•  Assignment
  • Importance of the assignment to the overall project
  • Understanding of the development environment and associated tools
  • Emphasis on the importance of commitments
•  Information Sources
  • Experts and contacts (network)
  • Documentation, libraries, web resources
  • Classes, seminars, tutorials, and technical talks

Engineering Summer Internship Benefits

• Company Benefits
  • Technical contribution to the organization
  • Improvement in the work environment
  • Recruiting vehicle
  • Positive image for the corporation
• Intern Benefits
  • Gain career related work experience
  • Enhance communication skills
  • Develop problem solving, engineering skills
  • Foster an understanding of the corporate culture

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 22nd, 2008 at 8:31 am and is filed under Employment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.