Getting the Most out of Student Interns and Volunteers (December 2019)

1. GETTINGTHE
MOST OUT OF
THE STUDENT
INTERN
EXPERIENCE
Dr. Sonia Archer-
Capuzzo
smarchermda@gmail.com
Dr. Kristi Bergland
bergl007@umn.edu

2. About Us
Dr. SoniaArcher-Capuzzo
ClinicalAssistant Professor, Library &
Information Science, University of North
CarolinaGreensboro
Practicum Liaison
Dr. Kristi Bergland
Music Metadata Librarian, University of
Minnesota

3. Poll: At what
type of
library do
you work?
Academic
Public
Special
Archive
Other

4. Poll: Have
you hosted a
student
intern or
volunteer in
your library
before?
YES NO

5. Practicums and Capstone
Field Experiences at UNCG
■ Practicum and Capstone Field Experience
– 120 hours for 3 credits
– 1 semester (or a bit more)
– Students work with an onsite mentor/supervisor,
preferably with an MLIS or equivalent experience
■ Practicum Liaison (that’s me!)
– Matching students and sites

6. Recruiting
■ “Job ads”
■ Flyers
■ Websites
■ Listservs
■ Bonuses
– Modest pay
– Parking
■ Use your network

7. Alternative Experiences
■ Alternative Spring Break
– 1 week volunteering instead of 1 semester (generally not for class
credit)
– Single, small(ish), focused project
■ Winter Break
– Concentrated over 1-3 weeks (could be for class credit)
– Larger project or multiple projects
■ Summer jobs programs
– Subsidized by external organizations to help students gain work
experience

8. Working with LIS
Programs
■ Online programs open
up possibilities and
challenges
■ More students in
different areas
■ Harder to know who to
reach out to
Image from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/leshaines123/4222256521

9. Designing
the Best
Experience:
Benefits for
Students
Gain practical experience
Opportunity to understand strengths and interests
Develop and clarify professional goals
Exposure to many different types of library work
Academic credit
Paid internships
Networking

10. Designing
the Best
Experience:
Benefits for
Libraries
Opportunity to mentor future generation of librarians
Opportunity for staff to develop management skills
Extra help with ongoing work
Opportunity to try projects outside the regular workflow
Build relationships with library schools and local colleges
Exposure to a variety of new perspectives and experiences
Benefit from interns’ language, cultural, musical, or technical
skill sets
Networking

11. Designing
the Best
Experience:
Elements of
a Successful,
Collaborative
Internship
Experience
Set expectations and goals in advance, but be
flexible
Share responsibility for goals and accountability for
success
Reliability, commitment, positivity, and good
communication are key
A willingness to learn and ask questions makes for a
richer experience
Building on expertise and/or setting new challenges

12. Designing the
Best
Experience:
Practicalities:
Planning for
Your Intern
■ Position posting
■ Written agreement and any other paperwork required by
MLIS program
■ Assessment - How do you measure success?
– Deliverables
– Exit interview/final report - valuable for intern and for
department
■ HR work/volunteer agreement or other security protocols
required by hots
– Security and data privacy agreements
■ System access, email, other permissions or access codes
needed
■ Documentation
■ Work space/computer
■ Disability accommodations
■ FAQs

13. Designing the
Best Experience:
Paperwork!
Sample learning objective
from practicum agreement
What? Develop an understanding around discovery systems
in an academic environment including capabilities,
limitations and user needs.
How? One-on-one discussions with University Libraries staff
in the areas of discovery systems and web
development.
Intensive work with practicum supervisor and Primo
admin/developer on University Libraries
implementation of Primo discovery system.
Reading: Libraries Discoverability project reports
By what date? October 28, 2019
How
measured?
Brief report summarizing and synthesizing one-on-
one discussions.
Propose and document a metadata mapping from
one University Libraries non-MARC metadata source
to Primo discovery system metadata schema (PNX).

14. Designing the
Best
Experience:
Sample
Projects
■ Assisting with regular department work
■ Collection development projects
– Existing departmental needs
– Building on student’s area of interest, language background, or
instrument/voice type
■ Building displays for public areas
■ Transcribing oral histories
■ Adding alt-text or transcription to documentation or training videos
■ Cataloging small batches of gifts
■ Producing LibGuides or other aids for specific topics
■ Learning various approaches to finding and filling holes in the collection
■ Planning and delivering internal staff training on topics of interest to
department and intern
■ Assisting with revising documentation
■ Creating wish lists for future collection development
■ Assisting with fundraising and grant writing
■ Blog posts and library social media updates
■ Creating (or updating) a manual for future interns
■ Give interns the chance to meet with a variety of librarians and archivists

15. GETTINGTHE
MOST OUT OFTHE
STUDENT INTERN
EXPERIENCE
QUESTIONS?
smarcherdma@gmail.com
bergl007@umn.edu