Alan Sisley wrote:
>
> I have seen a number of threads relating to internships on this list in
> the past four or five months, most of which seemed to be ex interns
> complaining of the  way they were treated in American museums.
>
> Internships are a fairly new development in smaller Australian museums
> such as our own, only recently have the academic bodies given us the
> necessary accreditation.
>
> A potential intern doing a masters approached me today to ask what she
> might do...my immediate reaction was to load all of those things on to
> her that the permanent staff  did not have the time or the inclination
> to do....but then I thought - no, that is what the interns on Museum-L
> complain about.
>
> So, would kind list members please advise me of "best of all possible
> worlds" solutions to my intern's query - what could she do that would
> both benefit her studies of museology, and also benefit this
> contemporary art museum?
>
> Alan Sisley
> Orange Regional Gallery
> New South Wales
> Australia
I've supervised 6 interns in the last several years and found them all
to be very positive experiences.  I think some keys to their success
include:
--a well thought out project with clear goals and deadlines.  Should
include some type of concrete result (reports they can take with them,
etc.) and be something that will be a real contribution to the museum.
--an internship agreement which spells out exactly what is expected of
the intern
--encouraging their input on the project's progress and on anything else
they observe
--integrating them into your staff, including them in staff meetings,
etc.
--finding out the interests of the individual and accommodating them
when possible (maybe an intern is working on a collections project but
is also curious about educational programming...set up a meeting between
them and your educational coordinator and/or have them participate in a
program)
--treating everything that occurs at your institution during their
tenure as a potential learning experience.  Let them know the
nitty-gritty of decisionmaking when you can.
--acquaint them with professional reference materials--good books,
journals, professional organizations, web sites, etc.

I love internships.  I loved my experiences as an intern and found them
very valuable and I love "passing the torch" on to other interns.
Choose a good project and an excited, motivated student and you're in
for a treat, Alan!  Nothing's better than introducing a new colleague
into the field.

Stacey Otte
Collections Manager
Catalina Island Museum
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