In Chapter 2, we discussed the importance of well-written goals and a learning agreement. Now is the time to revisit these goals and ensure you are on track. Let’s use the goal we discussed in chapter two, “My goal is to manage the referral desk for five hours, one day a week, to become familiar with local resources for ten weeks.” Now that it is a few weeks into your internship, you may be finding it hard to complete this goal. It may be that other people are already scheduled to cover the desk, and they state that they don’t need help. It may be that you get pulled away from this task to help on other projects. Having your learning contract and original goals handy will help you discuss this with your supervisor. You can bring up this issue with your supervisor by explaining that you are finding it difficult to meet your goals. By being specific and referring back to the learning contract, you are giving your supervisor information they can use to help solve the problem. Communicating with your supervisor will be crucial to your success (Figure 6.1)

When You’re Not Moving Forward

Often, a supervisor will help set up a work schedule but then become too busy to adjust it in ways that lead to increasing degrees of training and skill acquisition. Consider this situation: Mohamed was working at a busy mental health facility and found himself underutilized. Mohamed’s supervisor set up a supervision schedule but often canceled the meeting and stopped by Mohamed’s desk at different times during the week. Mohamed began to feel like they were just keeping him busy with mundane tasks to meet the hours required.

If you, like Mohamed, feel the internship has lost its sense of direction, or you are not progressing, it is crucial to think about how you want to move forward. Instead of complaining to the supervisor, consider presenting them with a plan that would move you toward your goals or increase your level of responsibility or involvement. If you have trouble formulating a plan, share your situation with your instructor or classmates since they are part of your network and can act as resources to help you generate possible solutions.

In the situation described above, Mohamed felt frustrated he wasn’t learning as much as he’d hoped. Since he was interested in community work, he proposed creating a book of community services that people can use to find assistance with housing, transportation, utility services, job training, food, childcare, and so on. He created a set of Facebook pages listing basic human services, names to contact, phone numbers to use, and active links for clients to contact resources directly. The supervisor valued his contribution enough to assign someone to maintain the site even after Mohamed graduated.

When You’ve Met Your Goals

Some interns reach the point where they feel they have met the goals in the original learning agreement and have time to do more. Of course, it is wise to make sure you have met those goals before discussing the situation with your supervisor. Take a moment to make sure all expectations have been met, and then create a goal or set of them that would help you grow while also offering value to the agency. Next, approach the supervisor with a tentative plan. If the supervisor feels you are ready, and if you no longer need to continue to perform your current duties, you can take the next step in your professional development.

Every person with whom you have contact may be a source of education and opportunity. Getting to know others within the agency allows you to discuss career interests with them and learn about career possibilities associated with their roles at the agency. For example, you could offer to help others in their work or create new tasks to take things into your own hands when there is nothing to do or when your jobs have become routine. Taking the initiative to learn about the agency and the services it provides often makes a good impression and opens new doors. One intern, Rosetta, worked at a substance abuse center. In her downtime, she researched other agencies in surrounding counties because she saw that clients often move from county to county. Consequently, Rosetta identified, compiled, and printed out a list of AA/NA meeting schedules for each county so clients would have the opportunity to continue to attend meetings after they moved.

Learning Agreements and Contracts

Your college, the placement site, or both may have certain legal obligations or routine requirements that must be met. One of them, for example, may be the need for a formal legal agreement between your educational institution and the placement site. Another one could be a written plan detailing who you will be working with, what duties you will be performing while at the site, and the learning objectives you, the site, and your instructor feel are essential for you to master.

One of the most empowering ways to achieve your goals is to draw up an internship or learning agreement. A learning agreement is often developed in written form so that the college, agency, supervisor, and student are all quite literally on the same page in regard to expected duties, requirements, and objectives. Another benefit of a written agreement is that it allows you to track progress and provides your standing if the agency points you in directions you did not intend or agree to go. In other words, these agreements are better handled by spelling them out on paper so that they can be used as a guide to help create a good internship plan and to maintain this focus throughout the internship experience. In this sense, the internship agreement is like a contract that you may refer to throughout the process.

Here’s an example of what a learning agreement could include:

• your expected duties
• your work hours
• your supervisor

When creating your learning agreement, use the SMART goal strategy discussed earlier in this chapter. This contract may also spell out limitations to the student’s activities and who will provide liability insurance for the student while on site. If these matters are not spelled out, you should talk to both the supervisor and your instructor about them.

Clear contracts provide the foundations for a rewarding internship experience. Consequently, your goals will also be reviewed by supervisors and agencies who will have some sound ideas and suggestions regarding your expectations and limitations. Sometimes, they even see more potential in an intern than the student does. This situation can create the opportunity to grow beyond your expectations.

Accordingly, sometimes it is best to modify an agreement. In that case, changes should be approved by the intern, the supervisor, and the instructor. Occasionally, a college or site will not use a contract but have only a verbal agreement with the intern. Although this situation isn’t the best, at least you can document what you agree to do, and not do, and then discuss that with your instructor.

Although rare, sometimes an internship does not work out well for a variety of reasons. For example, there may be a sudden change in supervisors or insurmountable interpersonal conflicts. Though no one wants to see things go in this direction, I’ve found alternatives, sometimes even a new site, without penalizing the student. Your instructor may also find helpful ways of dealing with this situation if you bring it up to them.

Reviewing Your Goals Licenses and Attributions

“Setting Goals” is adapted from “Using Supervision Effectively” in Succeeding at Your Internship: A Handbook Written for and with Students: Chapter 4 Using Supervision Effectively by Christopher Mruk and John Moor, which is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. Edited for style, clarity, and inclusion of diverse images by Yvonne M. Smith LCSW.

Figure 6.1 Photo by AllGo – An App For Plus Size People on Unsplash.