Hiring an Intern

Ariane

I have been approached by a local university to take on an intern or two for a few months (for a legit intern program).
I would have never thought to take one on before, but the idea now interests me.
Has anyone had experiences (good or bad) with interns?

Art Scott

From the interns I have known, known not worked with... they work for grades and experience ... ... no pay at least here in my area... ... ... most of the ones I have KNOWN were interning at attorneys offices and do all the real grunt work, same for the ones interning at Radio and TV stations...

Good Luck.

kd2

Find out from the university what their requirements and expectations are. My college age daughter was an intern (which is usually a non-paid position) for a PR firm over the summer and she had to complete a certain number of hours of work, submit a written report and a portfolio and presentation of the work she did while interning. The work she did allowed her to gain 2 credit hours of semester work which was evaluated by her instructor before the credits were awarded. The business owner (or intern supervisor) will also need to provide the university with an evaluation of the student. As an intern, she had a great experience because the company was truly interested in helping her learn the business rather than just having her do grunt work and running errands. She attended planning meetings, developed a national-level PR campaign for a company, assisted at PR events, etc.

As for photography interns, I've had one who worked with me for a high school semester requirement. She had to submit a portfolio of work she'd done while with me and summarize her activities and write a report. I had to sign off on her weekly hours spent with me.

I currently have two interns who work part-time with me just for the experience (they aren't doing it for grades or anything right now). Interns can be an awesome asset to your team if you take the time to train them. I've been spoiled by mine--they carry my gear, set up and break down equipment, know what lens or piece of gear to hand me just by me glancing at them, they know how to adjust lighting, take meter readings, and they help with posing and watching for clothing adjustments needed or stray hairs. Only problem with school-age interns is that I often lose them when they have to go back to classes in the fall or work at another job on the weekends.

The great thing for me is watching them develop as photographers and watching their skills get better and better.

orljustin

kd2 wrote: »

I currently have two interns who work part-time with me just for the experience (they aren't doing it for grades or anything right now). Interns can be an awesome asset to your team if you take the time to train them. I've been spoiled by mine--they carry my gear, set up and break down equipment, know what lens or piece of gear to hand me just by me glancing at them, they know how to adjust lighting, take meter readings, and they help with posing and watching for clothing adjustments needed or stray hairs. Only problem with school-age interns is that I often lose them when they have to go back to classes in the fall or work at another job on the weekends.

How much do you pay them?

kd2

Sorry if I was unclear. My interns are un-paid, but in exchange for their help I give them as much training and support as possible.

orljustin

kd2 wrote: »

Sorry if I was unclear. My interns are un-paid, but in exchange for their help I give them as much training and support as possible.

That's what I figured. Basically employees that you don't pay.

"I've been spoiled by mine--they carry my gear, set up and break down equipment, know what lens or piece of gear to hand me just by me glancing at them, they know how to adjust lighting, take meter readings, and they help with posing and watching for clothing adjustments needed or stray hairs."

"On the other hand, if the interns are engaged in the operations of the employer or
are performing productive work (for example, filing, performing other clerical work, or assisting customers), then the fact that they may be receiving some benefits in the form of a new skill or improved work habits will not exclude them from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime requirements because the employer benefits from the interns’ work."
www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs71.pdf

Since they know how to do everything, why don't you pay them?

SamirD

interns=free labor. I've looked into working with my local universities as this is truly win-win.

jxiao11

Free Labor?

SamirD wrote: »

interns=free labor. I've looked into working with my local universities as this is truly win-win.

I would be careful calling it "free labor," but yeah, interns definitely have a lot fo value. I recently hired an intern and used several different websites to recruit. One of the individuals at one of the companies told me a bit about FLSA regulations and if you plan on bringing on an intern who will bring direct value (ie make you money) to the company, you have to pay. If you plan on putting together an internship program I would recommend you look into it. check the link below

http://www.internmatch.com/guides/everything-you-need-to-know-about-intern-compensation

SamirD

jxiao11 wrote: »

I would be careful calling it "free labor," but yeah, interns definitely have a lot fo value. I recently hired an intern and used several different websites to recruit. One of the individuals at one of the companies told me a bit about FLSA regulations and if you plan on bringing on an intern who will bring direct value (ie make you money) to the company, you have to pay. If you plan on putting together an internship program I would recommend you look into it. check the link below

http://www.internmatch.com/guides/everything-you-need-to-know-about-intern-compensation

Yeah, I wouldn't use that term officially. Some really great info about the inner workings of internships! I knew it couldn't be as easy as just applying for interns at the local college.