How to Prepare an Internship Onboarding Checklist

Malaysian companies of all sizes regularly welcome interns, whether for a summer, a semester or as new trainees. Interns spend a limited time with you and are not bound by the same laws as typical employees. Thus their onboarding may differ slightly, but it still deserves formal planning to proceed smoothly and hassle-free.

Use this checklist to help interns adjust quickly and efficiently, and set the stage for both sides to get the most out of the internship.

Have their first day well organised. Before their first day, contact interns individually to confirm arrangements, such as:

On your end, ensure that teams are ready for their interns. Where will they sit? What are their first tasks and everyday duties? Have welcome kits, an interns’ manual or resources for them to browse between activities. You want to avoid idle time, or making interns feel that they’re disturbing regular work.

Arrange for them to have help with paperwork and phone/tech setup. Prepare simple instructions and manuals. Have an HR staff member ready to answer questions, and ask IT to check that phones work and PCs have virus and security protections in place.

Instruct IT to provide hardware and software: office email, group messaging, and project management sites or platforms. While ensuring interns’ access, IT should also protect sensitive information and your network. If your interns are students, don’t allow them to use their own devices, which may be advanced but whose security you cannot assure.

Introduce them to the company via email, chat message or at your virtual town hall, or assign staff members to tour the group to various departments. You want employees to know who they are and make them feel welcome.

Organise relevant training or observation. Interns can contribute more–and learn more– when trained in tasks and tools your business uses every day. Give them tasks they will not learn in class.

Assign a work buddy for each intern or group of interns. The buddy can watch out for them, and answer questions that interns may hesitate to ask in a public session. The buddy should understand that this is part of their job, not extra work.

Share with them your departments, functions and organisational chart. The interns can see where they fit in the larger picture of your business. You can also more easily assign them tasks like contacting other teams, distributing items or coordinating company activities.

Create a sense of belonging with company-branded items. Water bottles, hoodies, headsets and the like make newcomers feel they’re part of the team.

Help them settle in with group socials and activities. Camaraderie is a big part of office culture. Invite interns to group lunches or after-work professional activities, but remind employees to mind their words and actions around them. Interns may not always understand confidentiality, or what is appropriate to share with those outside the company.

Interns are more than just free labour for your company. A good internship experience means you’ll have bright young talent lined up at your door; a bad one will push your company to third or fourth choice. Industries are small, and you’re likely to see some of those interns again– if not as colleagues then as competitors or clients.

This is every reason you need to ensure an internship experience that’s fun, educational, and beneficial for everyone involved. Looking for a template to interview interns? Check this interview checklist.