5 Things to Consider Before Choosing a Human Services Internship was originally published on College Recruiter.
Dewey Delisle works at the New England Center for Children (NECC), managing interns as the Intern Specialist. During his eight years at NECC, Delisle, who started as an entry-level teacher with his bachelor’s and later obtained a Master’s degree in Applied Behavior Analysis, grew to find this passion in transforming the lives of children with autism through education, research, and technology. Here, Delisle shares their top 5 tips for students seeking a human services internship based on their experience in that field and his now internship specialist role at his organization.
Dewey Delisle, Intern Specialist at NECC
Human services internship seekers should consider these five factors when choosing the right opportunity:
1. Whether an employer offers the opportunity to convert to full-time status.
Delisle lauds the benefits of New England Center for Children’s (NECC) strategy to promote from within and to hire interns who they attempt to retain as full-time employees. He says supervisors who have the ground level experience can be more effective when leading their team.
2. How much training is involved.
Since an internship may not last very long, it’s in your employer’s best interest to get you up and running as soon as possible. Delisle says that interns who successfully complete the application, interviewing, and hiring process at NECC are thoroughly trained to do their jobs well and are not simply thrown into positions without an intense training 3-week period followed by ongoing supervisor r feedback to fine-tune performance to the highest level possible.
3. How much hands-on experience you’ll get.
Hands-on experience is critical, especially for people who want a career in human services. For example, NECC places interns in classrooms, working directly with 2-3 students, utilizing applied behavior analysis to implement educational curriculum and behavior management guidelines.
4. How transparent is the employer about what you will be doing.
Delisle says that after they review resumes, they actually bring candidates to tour the school so they can directly see the structure and organization of the facilities.
5. How customized the internship can be to your interests.
Although many of the interns at NECC perform the same basic duties, their interns gain additional experiences that are best suited to their individual areas of interest. That being said, Delisle also advises not to automatically dismiss an opportunity that doesn’t completely fit your ideal picture of an internship right off the bat. You may be exposed to job responsibilities you weren’t aware even existed and end up having an even better experience than anticipated.
This blog was edited from a previous live article on College Recruiter.
