In addition to the hours spent at the internship site, students must spend time
In addition to the hours spent at the internship site, students must spend time preparing for the internship, commuting, completing paperwork, reflecting, and processing the events as part of their education and professional growth. Setting clear goals and planning your time will ensure that you are able to manage this additional workload.
Scheduling
One of the worst things you can do at an internship is to be erratic in your attendance or to change schedules frequently since doing so can disrupt the lives of clients, the duties of the person supervising you, and the function of an agency. The primary editor of this book has found that scheduling difficulties is the single most frequently reported problem that agencies have with interns, so it is to be avoided.
It is important to figure out a schedule that works for you and for the site. To that end, you should work with the site’s supervisor or director to arrange the hours that are best for all parties. Some sites will be very accommodating with your scheduling needs. Others may have more rigorous requirements. In all situations, it is important to remember that the agency is being generous enough to give you supervised clinical duties. Sometimes they depend on you being there to help address client needs. So, remember to be open and honest with the person doing the scheduling in order to avoid conflicts. If a schedule conflict does occur, be sure to talk to the supervisor in advance about what is best for the agency and yourself.
Keeping track of hours might present similar issues. On one hand, you are not an employee and can “leave” any time you want. On the other hand, the class and the agency require accountability, especially if there is an hours-worked requirement. Some sites will give you a copy of the schedule but leave it to you to track the hours needed for the internship. Others might require signing in and out.
The Importance of Managing Your Time
Planning and managing your time will help you get the most out of your fieldwork experience. There are various types of planners and trackers—paper, electronic, and even phone apps. It is important to find one that works for you but that also works for the agency as well.
The most important feature of a planner is that you use it
If you forget to record appointments and other information, the planner is irrelevant. It may take some experimenting to see what fits best for you, but since the benefits of weekly schedules are clear, experimentation is worth the effort.
What to put in your planner
Over the years, our students have identified several helpful actions to help them stay on track:
- Plan your day before you start it and spend time each day planning, reviewing upcoming commitments and due dates, etc.
- Write a set of goals for yourself each day and have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish during the next week.
- Put classes and fieldwork schedules in your weekly calendar. Add your work schedule, too, if needed.
- Make a lis