ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries C&RL News ■ February 2002 / 109 Five steps to an effective internship program Providing a meaningful experience for interns and librarians by Barbara Quartern T op-notch graduate students in library and information science (LIS) programs can becom e effective reference interns to lighten the w orkload at busy reference desks. The key is in providing excellent training. O ur li­ brary recently updated its intern-training pro­ gram to help meet service needs at our refer­ ence desk and to provide a unique educa­ tional experience for library school students. O ur library hires LIS students to help at the reference desk and has done so since 1991. Reference interns during the 1990s, however, had little structured training. On the eve of our tenth anniversary of hiring interns, w e decided that our program needed revital­ ization, particularly in the face of rapid tech­ nological change and a fast-growing student population. We recognized that, in the increas­ ingly complex electronic environment, interns need ed focused guidance and concentrated attention to prepare for the rigors of refer­ ence work. O ur challenge was to come up with ways to provide this. Step 1 We solicited feedback from our past interns and from internship supervisors at LIS schools around the country. Some of the information came to us informally, in telephone conver­ sations and over lunch, and some of the in­ formation came to us by way of a brief sur­ vey w e sent out. From our past interns, w e h oped to collect appraisals of their experi­ ences as interns in our library and their sug­ gestions for improvement. From internship supervisors, we wanted feedback about what constitutes a worthwhile, educational intern­ ship experience. We learned that all of our past interns were satisfied with their internship experience. They were delighted to have been able to get some reference experience under their belts and to add to their résumés. Pre-1995 interns sug­ gested improvements such as more network­ ing opportunities and extra help with the job search. Post-1995 interns noted that their in­ ternships w ould have been better if the pro­ gram had included a concentrated training period. This information seem ed to corrobo­ rate our sense that the more electronic re­ sources we had, the more structured training interns w anted and needed. The internship supervisors emphasized the importance o f training, regular contact with the site supervisor, and the opportunity to practice professional-level duties. We hoped to incorporate all these ideas into a new in­ ternship program that was dedicated to m eet­ ing interns’ educational needs as well as the library’s service needs. O ur next step was to look carefully at w hat kinds o f assistance our library w anted from the interns. C o l l e g e & R e s e a r c h L i b r a r i e s ns we A bout th e auth o r Barbara Quarton is reference librarian/internship coordinator at the John M. Pfau Library at California State University, San Bernardino, e-mail: bquarton@csusb.edu mailto:bquarton@csusb.edu 110 / C&RL News ■ Feb ruary 2002 Reference in tern s can begin to practice th e ir in tervie w in g skills under w atch fu l eyes, in a non­ th reaten in g e n viro n m en t. This dynam ic is at th e h eart o f an in tern sh ip in o u r library. Step 2 We wanted responsible, capable interns to share in front-line duties, from answering di­ rectional questions to answering the tele­ phone. Because our library has no formal information desk, students ask all kinds of questions at the reference desk, from “Where are the magazines?” to “What is a scholarly journal?” We need friendly, helpful people at the desk to answer these types o f questions. More important, we need people who will listen actively and who can encourage those with research questions to consult a refer­ ence librarian. We knew from experience and from the literature1 that we wanted our interns to work in tandem with our reference librarians rather than on their own with no supervision. We created two levels o f reference intern­ ship: the reference rover and the reference intern. The reference rover position is avail­ able to LIS students who have completed the core LIS courses but who have not taken a formal reference course. The rovers assist stu­ dents in the reference area, answering basic and directional questions. They refer students with com plex questions to librarians behind the desk. They rove the reference area and troubleshoot computers and printer problems. The strength o f the reference rover is his or her ability to develop rapport with students who may be reticent about approaching a librarian. Reference interns, on the other hand, have completed the core LIS courses and have taken one or more reference courses. They understand the basics o f the reference inter­ view and have a good foundation in the or­ ganization o f reference materials. They an­ swer the telephone, retrieve interlibrary loans, and check out reference desk materials to those who request them. Interns answer ques­ tions about database coverage and instruct s t u d e n t s o n h o w to p e r f o r m b a s i c se a rc h e s . Like th e re fe re n c e ro v ers, re f­ e re n c e in tern s are train ed to re fe r stu ­ d en ts w ith c o m p le x r e fe re n c e issu es to the lib rarian at the d esk. Reference librarians on desk duty are thus freed to focus their expertise on students, fac­ ulty members, and others who have complex reference issues. They also have more time to teach in-depth research skills. As Carol Anne Germain points out in a C&RL News article, working with student in­ terns provides reference librarians the often enlightening opportunity to see their own jobs from a different perspective.2 In exchange, interns work as partners with reference librar­ ians, from whom they learn the rhythms of public service in our library. They experience the essence o f the profession by witnessing exchanges between the librarian and the pa­ tron. Reference interns can begin to practice their interviewing skills under watchful eyes, in a nonthreatening environment. This dy­ namic is at the heart o f an internship in our library. Step 3 The next step was to establish training crite­ ria. We wanted our interns to have a strong foundation in the basic aspects o f the library’s operation. We also believed they needed an essential awareness of the public service phi­ losophy o f the library. Beyond these basics, we wanted to provide a comprehensive ori­ entation to the library’s policies, procedures, and popular databases. It did not seem to be enough to take first-time interns on a tour of the library and expect them to “learn as they go.” Not only would this lead to an uncom­ fortable situation for both the interns and the reference librarians, it also would undermine interns’ confidence and sense o f place. A good orientation tells interns they are important members o f a strong team. Step 4 Once we knew what the interns wanted from their work experience and we had articulated our library’s needs and standards, we were able to develop the framework for our orien­ tation. Our new program is highlighted by two weeks o f training in which interns have a structured program o f orientation and ob­ servation. Interns engage in four active learn­ C&RL News • Feb ruary 2002 / 111 ing modules: getting to know the library and the campus, an introduction to the reference desk, using the library catalog, and using the popular databases. Prior to working on each module, interns complete a brief survey about their knowledge or prior experience with the module content. Modules 1, 3, and 4 are self-directed. Mod­ ule 2, introduction to the reference desk, is completed with the library’s internship coor­ dinator. Each module has an introduction, an activity, practice work, and advanced options. Each module takes about two hours to com­ plete, after which interns meet privately with the library’s internship coordinator to discuss specific issues and to ask questions or share concerns. These meetings are very informal. Interns also spend time observing the refer­ ence area and the practices o f the reference librarians. They are given time to explore the stacks and learn to operate the computers, printers, copy machines, and stand-alone ter­ minals. Step 5 We expect that, in addition to engaging in the structured orientation, interns will take responsibility for learning as much as pos­ sible on their own. We therefore provide them with written orientation and instruction about the library. Interns are given an intern orien­ tation packet containing all the basic infor­ mation they need. This packet has maps, rosters, campus in­ formation, and a telephone directory; our new In tern H an d b ook, which has a checklist of training modules and an overview o f interns’ duties and responsibilities; and more impor­ tantly, the handbook has a listing of frequently asked reference questions, an introduction to library instruction sessions, and an introduc­ tion to interlibrary loan. The handbook also offers suggestions for projects that would be particularly useful for the library and the in­ terns. The packet includes all o f the library’s instructional handouts, so interns can prac­ tice their database skills. Lessons w e learned Our library’s program has been in place for about one year. Five interns have participated in the orientation as described here. Our in­ terns are paid, and they receive graduate cred­ its based on the total number of hours they A w ord o f caution: th e training in tern ship takes a considerable am o u n t of planning and im plem entation tim e fo r developing m aterials, in terview in g candidates, and trainin g the n ew interns. The person responsible fo r the in tern ship program w ill be busy! work during the quarter. We have received great feedback from these interns, who are very happy to have been part of the pilot program. They are pleased with the level of training they received, and they report feel­ ing confident about their ability to provide effective reference service. We also surveyed our reference librarians about the quality of the interns' work, and we have made small adjustments along the way as a result o f their good suggestions. For example, we learned that scheduling one intern at the reference desk at a time works best, and that interns (like librarians) are more focused if they work at the reference desk for no more than four hours a day. A word o f caution: the training intern­ ship takes a considerable amount o f plan­ ning and implementation time for devel­ oping materials, interviewing candidates, and training the new interns. The person responsible for the internship program will be busy! Our interns are telling colleagues at their library schools about our program, and we are getting more and more applications for the few positions we have. We are in the process o f putting our internship training materials online, and we hope to continue to improve and expand our training pro­ gram. Notes 1. B. S. Woodard, “The effectiveness o f an information desk staffed by graduate students and nonprofessionals.” College & R esearch L ibraries 50 (July 1989):455-67. 2. Carol Anne Germain, “Are we overlook­ ing our most vital resource?” C&RL News 62 (July/August 2001):720-22. ■