Volunteer Internship Process for Supervisors

Below you will find the unpaid (by Free Geek) intern application and supervising process. If you're coordinating the Internship Program, check out Volunteer Intern Process for Program Coordinators.

Volunteer Intern Hiring Procedure

1. Make the job description.
   • The volunteer program coordinator works with individual staff members to create a detailed job description for a needed internship. Be sure there's enough staff time and desire to support an intern in the position you'd like. The working copy of the job description is posted on the wiki under the "Volunteer Internships" category (link at the bottom of this page). Use this template:Volunteer Intern.
   • Prioritize your different internships, and let an Internship Program Coordinator know how many interns you can handle at once.
2. Job posted on website and on other sites.
   • The job description is posted by Internship Program Coordinators on our internships page.
3. Volunteers apply!
   • Those interested in internships at Free Geek will be directed to the application, asked to choose which internship interests them, and apply for the internship.
4. Intern is screened.
   • The Internship Prog. Coord.s (IPCs) then makes a screening phone call to the prospective intern to be sure they're a pretty good fit for the internship they've chosen, or direct them towards another internship or one of our regular volunteer programs..
5. Supervisor contacts prospective intern for an interview.
   • If the intern seems like a good fit, the prospective supervisor will schedule an interview with the intern and let the Internship Program Coordinator know the outcome using this form.

• If an internship supervisor ever wants to make changes to his/her internship description, make changes on the wiki then be sure to alert an internship program coordinator so she can make changes to the website versions of the job descriptions.

Intern Interview/Processing

1. Interview.
   • During the face-to-face interview with the prospective intern, the prospective FG supervisor asks some questions to see if the applicant would be appropriate for the position.
   • Please update the Intern Interview Questions wiki page with new or reworded questions as needed. It'll help other supervisors! Some area supervisors have their own questions they like to ask during an interview. Please feel free to develop your own questions, and share them with the IPC.
2. Decide yes or no for that applicant.
   • Interviewers talk after the interview to accept or deny the applicant. The supervisor might also make the decision before the interview is over and tell the applicant.
3. Let the applicant know the decision.
   • Sponsor calls or emails applicant with the outcome. If you let the applicant know your decision before the end of the interview, of course skip this step.
4. Schedule and paperwork.
   • The supervisor will work out a schedule with the intern, and will let the IPC know the schedule using this form. If the intern has additional paperwork for school or another organization, the intern should provide the IPC with the paperwork. Paperwork will be filed in the wine cellar.
5. Logistical details. If intern is brought on, their free geek supervisor should:
   • Put the intern's schedule on the Volunteer Intern Schedule page. If you know any info that would be appropriate for the timeline on that page, doing so would be helpful for the IPCs.
   • Have new volunteer intern sign the Volunteer Intern Contract and give the signed contract to the IPC to file with other volunteer intern paperwork. Some areas have come up with their own area-specific expectations for interns to sign.
   • introduce the intern to everyone on staff, especially any staff that will have regular contact with them.

• The IPC keeps track of paperwork, evaluations, timesheets, etc. and will work to juggle these things, although...
• The responsibility ultimately lands on the intern him/herself to be sure the evaluations and other paperwork are filled out by their FG supervisor on time.

Intern Training/Maintainence

1. Training.
   • The intern's Free Geek supervisor trains the new intern. Don't forget, training should happen throughout the intern's time here - it's not just a one-time thing.
2. Introduce intern to the community.
   • Once you know your intern is going to keep showing up regularly, let staff and volunteers know that we have a new intern (and, ideally, point to their new schedule. This will help the intern integrate into our community, and help others accommodate to this new helper.
3. Check in.
   • Once your intern is settled, showing up reliably, and doing a good job, it can be easy to just let them do their job for a long time because, well, they're doing such a great job, and why would you want to change that? We want to keep them engaged, too. Please check in once every month or two. It can be informal, and cover stuff like: what's going right, what's going wrong, is the intern happy where he/she is, or would they like to change their job description?
4. Problems?.
   • If there are discipline problems with the intern, use the Volunteer Discipline Policy. Let an IPC or a member of the HR Committee know about it. If the intern came to us through an outside agency, you or an IPC should get in touch with their case manager-type person at that agency.

Longer-Term

The Internship Program Coordinators will schedule periodic check-ins with supervisors to see how their interns are doing and make sure the supervisors understand and are satisfied with the program. These check ins will most likely manifest in the form of quarterly or biannual meetings.

Supervisors should also be sure to approach the IPCs with any issues they have with the program or if something doesn't seem right.