Jeff Kupperman wrote >In the long run internships benefit museums as a whole. Maybe museums should >be working together (through the AAM, etc.) to find ways to make internships >more feasable and beneficial for all parties involved. Thinking in the long run you will get no argument from me. But its difficult to keep the benefit of the museum profession in mind when considering to host an intern, when your buried with your own work and your still cleaning up after the intern you hosted two years ago. I would include in your list of partners the graduate and undergraduate programs that send interns to museums. The potential for prestigious internships and eventual employment is ussualy prominently featured in literature and recruitment rhetoric, yet many of these programs (certainly not all) do nothing to prepare either the intern or the host to ensure a quality educational experience. There are schools I will not host and some schools I recruit from actively based upon this variance in assistance. Redirect: I know that there is a section of AAM dedicated to professional development issues. Have they, or anyone else for that matter developed criteria or standards or guidelines for a quality internship. If not, what does everyone think the elements of a quality internship should be and what are the responsibilities of the various individuals and institutions involved. I ask this a person who has been given (or did I volunteer I think I missed that meeting) the task of volunteer coordinator and would like to take the job beyond the step of merely filling out placement forms and answering phone calls. THese thoughts are mine and do not reflect the opinions of my employer, co-workers, employees, friends, relatives, or signifigant others. Matthew A. White Director of Education Baltimore Museum of Industry 1415 Key Highway Baltimore, MD 21230 (410)727-4808 [log in to unmask]