As an intern, your supervisor may ask you to reflect on your development and accomplishments, in order to enhance the educational experience and help you communicate what you have learned to future employers. Below you will find a series of reflection questions along with possible answers and insight into why these questions are asked. Give an example of a new experience you have had at work? I recently attended a departmental strategy meeting where I learned about long-term objectives and the thinking behind why we focus our time and energy in certain areas. It was an eye-opener! I finally got to use a new design tool I had read about but had never actually seen. It was amazing, and complicated at the same time. It made me realize how much I have to learn. I m going to pay more attention in class when we talk about new technology because it s what we actually use out in the field. Awareness of the opportunities to learn new things that were not fully available to you in class Identifying connections between classroom instruction and its practical application in the professional sphere How have you found the transition from school to work? Is it what you thought (easier/harder/more difficult/a breeze)? What are the best and worst aspects of the workplace? It s been both rewarding and challenging, maybe a little harder than I expected. The people and the work are great! I guess the worst part of the experience is all the logistics of getting to work on time every day. I m not used to that and it can be a little tiring, but overall I m really enjoying it. I ve enjoyed the transition. I ve been in school a long time and it feels right to get a chance to test out the world I m spending all this time, money and energy trying to become a part of! I guess the part of the job that I find most challenging is learning all the power relationships and steps you have to take to get something done. I d prefer to just spend my energy on design, but in the workplace there is more to it than that. It s something I need to work on. Self-awareness about participating in a life transition, with new challenges and expectations Prompts you to think about what you need to focus on to best prepare for life beyond University 1
What kind of professional skills have you gained during your internship? How have you applied them and how have they benefited you personally? (e.g. skills such as communication, organization and time management) I kind of understand what they mean when they say every organization has its own culture. Even their meetings are different from what I expected or had experienced in previous summer jobs. I ve had to learn the rules around how to prepare for team meetings, and how to contribute to them. Being on time, meticulously prepared, presenting my update to the group all of this is new to me. I learned a lesson about communication when I sent an email to the team that was not taken well. It was a simple misunderstanding and they were very supportive I didn t get in trouble or anything like that. But I learned the hard way that tone is hard to express in an email and that certain types of conversations should be carried out in person, not email. Understanding the complexities of the workplace* Self-awareness regarding your personal growth in this area *There is a lot to learn in the professional sphere beyond purely technical skills. Problems in the workplace are typically solved holistically with multiple players and priorities. Learning to navigate this part of the professional sphere is in some instances just as important as the technical knowledge you need. The internship is an excellent opportunity for you to meet new colleagues in the workplace. Have you taken advantage of networking opportunities during your internship? What have you done to expand your list of either potential employers or potential coworkers? I introduced myself to everyone in my team, as well as people I met during meetings. We also had a staff luncheon and that was a good time to meet new people. I ve collected some business cards, and have added a few people on LinkedIn who I interact with regularly at work. Before I leave I m going to ask my supervisor if she ll be a reference. One thing I learned was to ask my mentor (and people I work with a lot) questions about their professional development and any recommendations they may have for me. One person even said that if I continue to perform well she ll be happy to connect me with a colleague 2
of hers at a company they do business with. So I m trying to expand my network whenever it s appropriate to do so. I am careful not to be pushy. Demonstrate that you are looking for opportunities to make professional connections with people at the partner organization Demonstrate that you are aware of boundaries and that you are expanding your network with the appropriate people at the appropriate time Aware that there are multiple mediums for networking including personal referrals, references, and LinkedIn TIP: Reflecting on experience can help you to identify specific training and career goals, enhance your awareness of what you are learning and why, and enrich your academic and professional development. Overall, what activities did I enjoy most? Overall, what activities did I do best? I like it most when I am knee-deep in a project and given my own responsibilities. It was a little frightening at first but as time went by I realized I can do this! So I would say that I enjoy the independent challenges the most and am probably at my best during these times. I have risen to the challenge and found it so interesting and rewarding! I like the group work when we all sit in a room and hammer out our design solutions. It s really exciting to see people s thought processes. I found out I m really good at communicating my opinions and backing them up with sound reasoning. I feel like I have impressed people it is empowering. Awareness of what you enjoy and where your strengths lie Understanding that enjoyment and performance are often connected Overall, what activities did I find most challenging? Overall, what activities did I like the least, or need to improve on? I don t like the data administration and all the tracking that goes into the role. I know it s important and has to be done but it is not something I enjoy and I am always worried about making a mistake. I picked up some 3
of the key technical skills and design tools very quickly, but the data stuff is difficult and boring. I hate public speaking, even presenting or updating in a team meeting. I get so nervous and fumble my words. I think I m really excelling in my other responsibilities, but this is the hardest part for me. I asked my supervisor if I could be excused from presentations but she said no, and that it is was part of my role. She said she would help me with it, so I m going to try hard to get better. I know this is often something you have to do in the real world. Awareness of areas that you may need to develop Understanding that most careers involve aspects that you enjoy less than others. These responsibilities have to be approached with the same determination, timeliness, and attention to quality. Perhaps the experience prompts you to steer your career goals in different directions What are some of the suggestions I ve received to increase my effectiveness or understanding of my job responsibilities? My supervisor seemed pretty happy with my technical knowledge, and I even offered some suggestions to improve company processes from coursework. What she has been concerned about were things like how I collaborated with team members. I mean, I was ok, but I tend to be happiest when I m soloing on a software project and barely look up to breathe. She wants me to seek out input from the team more often and incorporate their suggestions into my work. I do need to work on this I know it. My supervisor is a great guy and he always has good suggestions and insight. I had a lot of trouble with some of the physics behind the project we were working on. He made me realize I really need to focus on this and dig a little deeper into application when I get back to fourth year. You learn this stuff in class, but until you are trying to apply it in a real-life situation you don t know how important it is. I got the grounding in class, but maybe I need to ask my prof about how I can gain more insight into the practical applications of these tools. Awareness of areas in need of further development and focus Appreciation for the academic knowledge you are using in class, and the importance of application in the professional sphere 4
What are some of the areas where I fell short of my plans or did not meet my goals? I really wanted to be involved in a project from start to finish by this time. Unfortunately, I was pulled off one project and put on another. I wanted to say in my resume or in an interview that I had seen a project through to completion. Thing is, the new work I m doing is really cool and challenging, almost cutting edge I d say. So I guess it worked out. I still need to work on confidently presenting myself when I meet new people at work, or clients, or if I m asked to present an update at a meeting. I m not comfortable with it and I know it s a skill I need. Makes me worried about interviews after I graduate. I m going to continue to work on this and my mentor at work has promised to help. Awareness of specific developmental goals and where you are in relation to those goals Identifying ways in which you can still achieve your goals or draw value from what you have achieved What are some of the work-related goals and interests that I would like to build on in the last few months of my internship? What things could I do before I leave that could help me pursue my career aspirations? Are there other comments or concerns I would like to discuss with my supervisor before the end of my internship? There s a software program that is used for much of the work the department does. I ve seen it in action but have not had a chance to use it. I want a chance to use it and the person I m working with has already said I will get a chance in phase 3 of our current work. They have an online tutorial on it so I plan to study that before we start. I need to learn how to network! I ve started using LinkedIn as a kind of sourcing tool, reviewing the backgrounds of people that work in the field, finding out where they work and what professional development they ve done. I m joining the same groups. But I also need help in how to approach people for references and referrals to people they know. I plan to attend a networking workshop at Queen s Career Services when I get back to school. Sets your focus on specific learning goals and prompts you to find a way to achieve them 5
Additional Reflection s Reflection Guide for Interns 1 What are your primary learning goals for the internship? What do you most want to get out of this experience? 2 How will you measure success? 3 What strengths and values do you bring to the role? Are there ways for you to express or call upon these during your internship? 4 What aspects of the internship related to your classroom studies? In what ways did your coursework prepare you for the internship? In what ways did classroom theory differ from what you experienced in the field? In what ways could your knowledge of course material be applied in the workplace to improve processes or professional functions? 5 Has your work during the internship related to broader social issues which interest you? Have you learned anything during your internship that has reshaped your opinion or understanding of a larger social issue? What knowledge or skills that you learned in the classroom could help you make a positive change in the world? Has your internship changed your feelings about what type of company or work you want to be involved with in the future? 6 Would you describe the project you worked on as a collaborative effort with contributions from many parties, or was it more individual work? Do you think this was the best way to get the work done? Why do you think this? 7 Did you notice or experience communication challenges or lack of direction? Why do you think this happened? 8 What do you believe were the core strengths of someone you worked with closely or admired at the company? Why were these important qualities for s/he to accomplish what needed to be done? 9 What did you learn about professional communication? How would you approach communication in the workplace differently in the future? 10 Would you participate in this experience again? Why or why not? Has this experience changed you in any way? 11 If you could change one thing about your role in this experience what would it be? 12 Imagine that all of your internship experiences and lessons were about to be magically taken away from you and erased from your memory. You have the chance to save one thing. What would it be? 13 Name one thing you will do differently in your next professional experience? 14 What have you learned about yourself (strengths, interests, career goals) as a result of this experience? 15 Based on your recent internship, what areas of coursework would benefit you the most in the field? Are there areas of study you need to focus on? How will you accomplish this? 16 How has your internship changed the way you think about your degree program? Does it change the way you approach your studies? If so, how? 6