5 Questions For the Last Weeks of Your Summer Internship

Hello, my friends and colleagues!

Happy Summer!

How may I provide more value?  

This.  This!!!  This question may change the trajectory of your internship.  Seriously.  Employers recognize that interns are headed back to school in a few weeks, so the interns may not be able or willing to give much more value.  In fact, some employers may lessen the workload during those last few weeks because they assume that interns are mentally checked out until they go back to school.  Imagine how you could stand out if you gave 110% for every last second of your internship?  Imagine if you asked for more work instead of easing out of your internship?  Imagine if you got a big project completed during the last week so that you can go out with a bang?  While first impressions are crucial, so are the last impressions of an internship.   So, give them a brilliant last impression of you…an impression of professional who values themselves and their future employers.  

May I please get feedback on my performance this summer?*

Feedback is crucial in being able to grow as a professional.  While we all aspire to know our own strengths and weaknesses, obtaining objective feedback is a way to learn more about ourselves – the good and the bad.  This particular question is incredibly general – which will probably only give you generic feedback.  Feel free tailor this question to your specific role.  Or to specific concerns you may have about your internship.  This question shows that you truly want to learn and grow during your internship experience – which is an amazing quality!

*If you ask this question, you might actually receive constructive feedback – that includes negative feedback.  And that is how you grow into a better professional.  If you get negative feedback, don’t be defensive.  Be grateful and learn from it.

Would you like to grab lunch?  

Food.  Colleagues.  There may not be a better way to network with people than over some grub.  At this point in your internship, you probably know the restaurants that are close by and that are quick.  Ask someone that you’ve been meaning to work with more closely over the summer.  Ask an executive that you admire.  Make sure to ask them in person if possible.  If that isn’t possible, then send them an email or a celandar invite.  They would LOVE the proactivity and the boldness in your question.   Find a way to connect with them on stuff outside of work.  Do they like baseball, ice cream, museums, camping, fishing, donuts, etc?  Ask them about their dream job or dream role.  Ask them if they have advice for your professional journey.  People love to share their insights.  So give them the opportunity to do so!  

Will you be a reference for me?  

If you don’t ask, the answer will always be no. ~Nora Roberts.  This question might seem scary.  Please ask anyway.  People are generally thrilled to be a reference because it requires less work than a letter of recommendation.   Consider carefully who to ask, though.  Make sure you ask someone who knows your work and your work ethic.  If they say yes, then be sure to send them an email when you actually give out their name as a reference.  Then if someone calls to ask about your work as an intern, it won’t come as a surprise.  Then they can tell a future employer how amazing you were during your internship!

How can an internship lead into full time employment?

This may be another tough question – both to ask and to answer.  Do your best to gauge who the proper person is to ask this question…you can ask this of HR or your current manager or a trusted colleague.  Be prepared for the person to not be able to answer this question on the spot.  They might need to do more research or ask some other colleagues.  Please be patient with them and give them plenty of time to answer this question.   Regardless, your interest in future employment is commendable and will definitely be noticed – in the short term and when they are ready to hire someone full time in the future.

Enjoy those last few weeks of your internship!  It is a wonderful foundation for your career.  

If there is any way we can help you or your organization, please don’t hesitate to contact us!

Have a terrific day~