What Your Intern Won't Tell You

This post was written as part of the #Interning series, which is tied to LinkedIn’s new student editorial calendar. Follow the stories here or write your own.

There are a lot of articles out there about how to be a great intern, but not a lot about how to be a great company for interns.

I recently wrote about Why Your Intern Shouldn’t Be Getting Your Coffee and how companies should build robust intern programs where both the intern and the company learn from each other.

Throughout my career in entertainment and now hospitality, I've had the opportunity to work with a number of interns. Some were just going through the motions while others were fully dedicated to their time at the company and wanted to learn as much as they could. I've even learned that the most valuable thing you can do is give them your time - everything from regular one on one meetings to informal lunches.

This week, I decided to turn the tables and ask our intern, Ryan Joffe, what college students look for in companies. Here’s what he had to say:

Me: What do interns want out of their internship?

Ryan: Interns really hope to make an impact in the company they are working for. It is important that we work on projects that affect the success of the business rather than just completing busy work.

Me: What's one of the most important things that make a program successful?

Ryan: I think it is extremely important to have a mentor in an internship program. Observing how one does their work and asking that mentor questions can go a long way for an intern.

Me: How important are social activities in a program?

Ryan: Very important. Interns want to be able to network with a variety of people. This includes other interns and employees. Meeting new people can open many doors for somebody’s career.

Me: In all the time you spend interning, what's one activity that you learn the most from?

Ryan: Participating in meetings is a great way for interns to learn as well. To be able to observe how people interact and work together to complete a project can be beneficial.

Me: How important is being paid for internship?

Ryan: Money is obviously important for interns. Most of us are undergraduates and need to save every penny. Also, I think a stipend motivates interns to work harder. It makes them feel important to the company.

Me: What have you enjoyed the most so far in your internship at Marriott International?

Ryan: Interns hope that they are engaged and challenged by the employees. I have been impressed so far on how employees are interested in our opinions. They understand that millennials are the future of our market and how important it is to understand how they think and make decisions.

What would you add?

Join the conversation with me and other travel insiders at Overheard@Marriott.

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To learn more about creating what's next, how to create raving brand fans, and the Marriott International Global Creative and Content Studio, join me at Content Marketing World 2015, produced by the Content Marketing Institute, on September 8-11, 2015 – Cleveland, OH. View other speakers and the full agenda here. I hope to see you there.