I must say that I'm finding this conversation deeply concerning. Of 
course every museum will have different needs and offerings for those 
interested in contributing their time, but there's been a general odour 
of 'get nothing and like it' wafting off some comments on this topic.

I can only speak for myself, but interns guaranteed a real working 
experience and have real responsibilities. Of course there's 
photocopying and envelope-stuffing, but it's a team effort and no one is 
above admin. Quite frankly only giving interns routine admin is a sure 
sign of poor management.

I think that any institution that takes on interns has a serious 
responsibility to those individuals - to give them a positive and 
accurate experience and to give them actual experience which will help 
them not only to progress in their career but also help them to cope 
with the responsibilities they will take on when they get a job.

An internship is like any other museum learning programme - it should 
have measurable learning outcomes and be evaluated against them. In 
practice this should help align everyone's expectations at the outset 
and prevent what Claire has described. We perform exit interviews with 
all of our interns and get extensive feedback from them about the 
programme to make sure that we are delivering on our promises.

I would also argue that the 'experience gaining' bit begins during a 
rigorous and realistic application and interview process. Hiring someone 
who doesn't meet your expectations is bound to happen at some point, but 
if someone isn't an effective employee (paid or unpaid) whomever is 
managing them should take a long hard look at themselves and their 
management techniques before they apportion blame.

Just my opinion (and certainly not speaking on behalf of any institution)

/rant

Best wishes,
Dominique

--
Dr Dominique Bouchard
Hunt Museum Curator of Education and Outreach

Address: Hunt Museum, Rutland Street, Limerick, Ireland
Tel: +353 (061) 312 833
Email: [log in to unmask]

www.huntmuseum.com

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On 30/04/2012 07:33, claire chickly wrote:
> I would like to answer as a former intern. It is somehow frustrating
> to be asked to know how to to operate a copy machine and lick stamps.
> The aim of an internship is to decide the field in which you want to
> work, and then to gain practical knowledge in this field. Is making
> copies and doing basic research the best way to know if one wants to
> make a job his/her own? I don't think so. I have always been
> disappointed by my internships when I had no responsibilities and no
> challenging tasks.
>
> Love of history is definitely not enough. If you want your experience
> to be enriching, you'd better prove your university education and your
> skills match with the internship you apply for.
>
>
> 2012/4/30 Nicole Nathan<[log in to unmask]>:
>> Simple answer: no. They have to be able to write, operate a copy machine,
>> follow directions, and think on their own.
>>
>> Nicole Nathan
>>
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