Expectations of Intern Supervisors
Supervision is an essential component in the educational nature of internships which fosters the successful transition from the classroom to the work setting:
- Supervisors are professionals, trained in the same discipline as that of the internship, who routinely use a level of professional knowledge, skills, and judgment in the performance of their responsibilities.
- A supervisor has the knowledge, experience, and expertise to provide teaching and training that is appropriate to the student’s academic level and that challenges the student to develop greater skill development.
- A supervisor uses his/her skills to effectively provide leadership and guidance, clarity of expectations, training and development, teaching skills for employability, ongoing monitoring and feedback, and evaluation.
- A supervisor evaluates the student’s progress based on specific learning objectives and outcomes.
- A supervisor also evaluates a student in the areas of his/her ability to learn and develop the following:
- problem solving and creative thinking skills,
- attention to detail and analytical skills,
- computation/technical skills appropriate to the position,
- oral and written communication skills
- delivery of presentations and public speaking,
- interpersonal and teamwork skills,
- ability to learn from others in a diverse environment,
- organizational effectiveness skills (how one fits in with the norms and expectations of the organization),
- professional and career development skills, and
- developing professional competencies (managing time and priorities, attention to deadlines, etc.)
