Internships are a two-way street. On one side, you have a young professional looking for experience to grow their career. On the other side, you have employers taking a chance on potential talent with the idea that they will help the company prosper. The end game is to merge both sides (and their expectations) as quickly as possible. We’re talking a win / win internship scenario.

To help guide your company toward internship success, here are five tips that will help you enhance your program.

 1. Craft a job description that highlights skillsets students already have

Young professionals aren’t sure what they’re capable of yet. Grab their attention by listing skillsets they already have. Include verbiage like “multi-tasking,” “creativity,” “regard for others,” “team player”… you get the point. Then, mix in the harder skills they may learn on the job. Stating that specific related coursework and class projects apply easily shows them they have what it takes to start something new.

 2. Broadcast your open position

We are excellent at getting our client’s needs out to the public, so why aren’t we doing that for ourselves? Broadcast your open position on your website, social media, on the air, and on job search sites like Indeed and Glassdoor. Remember, young professionals want to work for a company that gives them adequate training. Tell them how they will be supported and trained throughout their internship in your advertising.

 3. Set expectations

On your intern’s first day, sit down with him or her and set expectations. In addition to their daily duties, describe your management style. Point out people at the office that could be a good mentor for them. Be sure to describe the training and support that will be given to remind them that they don’t need to have all of the answers. They just need the ability to learn. Bottom line: help them see what the standards are and make sure they know they’re not alone in meeting them.

 4. Make the new intern a true part of the team

No one likes feeling like they don’t fit in – especially young professionals who are still learning the ropes outside of college. Make the new intern a true part of the team by having them meet the rest of the group in one-on-ones or a full group meeting. It’s as simple as going to lunch or scheduling a 30 minute break to get to know one another. After they’ve started to open up, let them dive in! Give your new intern a business card like the rest of the team, and put them on a meaningful project. You want an intern you can turn into an employee. That means skipping the coffee runs and giveaways, and training them to work on CNAs, proposals and presentations. By the time they come onto the team, they will be trained and ready to go!

 5. Recap their internship

When the internship comes to an end, have another meeting with your not-so-new friend. Talk about the things they did well and the things they could do better. If they showed promise and meshed well with the group, don’t hesitate to offer them a job on the spot. Chances are, if they feel they are valued and a true part of the company, they will become that full-time person you’re looking for.

The two-way street we call internships can be confusing to navigate. But, if you put these five tips to work, you can use previous intern’s feedback and testimonies to attract to continue down the road to success.

Getting students interested in broadcast, specifically broadcast sales, can be one of the tougher pitches we’ve made when starting from scratch. But, if we go at it exactly like we do the rest of our broadcast sales relationships, we may just start to see the line forming at our career fair tables. For additional courses on hiring potential sales talent, checkout our 14-part series, Media Hiring and Recruitment.

For more information about the P1 Futures Program, contact Nickey Buzek by email at nickey@p1learning.com or by phone at 888-944-9377.
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