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Welcome everyone to our discussion about starting a Ruby internship. Depending on your background and what brought you here, we will explore various aspects of setting up and running an internship.
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It's important to set healthy expectations; while it's tough to cover every aspect of starting an internship, our goal is to identify some of the biggest components that we've identified over time.
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This workshop is all about effective participation, so here’s how it works. For every contribution or participation, you can earn a duck. They come in different styles and colors.
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I encourage everyone to focus on participation, so I’d like you to close your eyes for a moment. Imagine waking up to a beautiful day.
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Picture yourself getting out of bed and excitedly rushing to the window to open the curtains wide. You see the sunshine and, off in the distance, a hill that you've climbed many times before.
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You run towards the front door, and as you step outside, you catch a glimpse of an animal in the distance. Some of you may wonder if this is your spirit animal, but it's not quite that.
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Now, I want you to imagine that animal and the sound it makes. Make that sound, and as you do, make it louder. Feel the sound, and give it different tones.
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This is your confusion support animal. Whenever you feel uncertain, make the sound of your animal, and it will help guide you to clarity.
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Now, raise your hand if you know what your confusion support animal is. Great! Just remember, whenever you have a suggestion or want to chime in, simply raise your hand.
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Internships are important to us, and I’d like to hear from you: What’s the biggest reason you’ve either struggled to start an internship, or why are you finding it challenging to run one effectively?
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Let’s hear from you. Is it a lack of historical experience with the team? Is it difficulty finding support from management or leadership? Confidence around mentorship could be a challenge, too.
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These are very common concerns, and our community is supportive, especially during conferences. When I attended RailsConf last year in Portland, the contrast between the job boards for senior positions and early career opportunities was striking.
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We often see a significant portion of attendees raise their hands when asked how many are new to the community, which suggests a conflict between a supportive community and company structures that may not facilitate that.
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It's essential for us to create change within our organizations, and we must recognize that many care deeply about this topic, even if they sometimes forget those early stages of their journeys.
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I’d like to introduce Chelsea, our CEO and founder of Learn Academy. We were established in January 2015, and at that time, we were one of the few boot camps in Southern California.
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Today, we still offer internships as an integrated part of our curriculum. Internships help solidify skills learned in the classroom and provide hands-on experience, building confidence.
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Our program consists of a 16-week plan: 12 weeks of classroom instruction followed by a 4-week internship with a company. We’ve graduated over 500 students, completing more than 200 internship programs with various companies.
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Next year, we're partnering with the VA to help transitioning veterans enter the tech industry. We will graduate over 200 students who will undergo 100 internships with multiple companies.
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Back in early 2015, we attended RubyConf to find partners for students. To our surprise, every company at the table was interested in offering internships.
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This reflects the Ruby community's commitment to supporting newcomers, which is why I’m excited today to contribute to this workshop.
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To set up your internship program, we recommend breaking it down into four parts: pre-planning, preparation, execution, and getting support.
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Many companies jump straight to the execution phase, which can lead to obstacles. We want to emphasize the importance of preparation and planning.
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Pre-planning is critical as it involves your pitch to leadership. This includes defining your goals, measurables, and logistics, as these are what leadership wants to hear.
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What is your goal for starting an internship? Why do you want to do it? This should be written down so that you have a clear idea to guide you.
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Several common goals include developing your senior engineers, building a talent pipeline for the organization, and contributing positively to the tech community.
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The pipeline for early-career talent is crucial, so if you haven’t already written down your goals, please do so.
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Anyone else have an idea for potential goals for your internship? Each suggestion is valuable, so please share.
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As we discuss these common goals, it's critical to align them with the organization's objectives. Employee retention, mentorship, and giving back to the Ruby community are all interwoven with your goals.
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Moving forward, let's talk about setting measurable goals. In the educational sphere, we often focus on learning objectives as a way to evaluate interns' success.
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Setting up SMART goals—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound—help ensure clear expectations. For instance, if your goal is to find a new hire through the internship process, clarify how many candidates you aim to interview.
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Part of these objectives includes discussing what success looks like for an intern and providing them clear benchmarks for their progress.
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I want to ask you to think together about a smart goal related to your interns' first week and the entirety of their internship.
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As they progress, it’s important to revisit these goals. At some point, you need to build in a structure that allows interns to feel a sense of ownership over their work.
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Every internship should involve a clearly defined project. It’s crucial to avoid a culture that is solely about helping because that sentiment runs thin quickly.
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Your interns should contribute meaningfully. Allow them the experience of working on a tangible project that can sustain their interest and energy throughout the internship.
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Projects can include documentation updates, adding testing features, or exploring areas that have not received attention. The key is to make it manageable.
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Avoid multi-step projects that overwhelm interns by expecting them to complete many tasks at once. Each task should have clear input, process, and output definitions.
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The internship execution phase includes continuous feedback and managing expectations for both the interns and the project leads. Communication throughout the process is crucial.
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I recommend reserving a portion of Friday afternoons for professional development. In this time, interns can reflect on their week, update their LinkedIn profiles, and review their learning experiences.
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As the internship wraps up, whether hiring occurs or not, it’s important to celebrate the achievements, review the initial goals, and ensure that support continues even after their work ends.
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Celebrating the work of your interns strengthens community ties and fosters an environment of continuing mentorship.
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In summary, while setting up internships may seem daunting, a structured plan with clear goals and a supportive community can create a beneficial and productive experience for all involved.
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Internships can significantly impact the Ruby community, and we each play a role in nurturing the next generation of developers. With thoughtful planning and execution, we can foster a vibrant internship culture.
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We want to encourage any attendees to reach out to schedule a follow-up discussion, whether you’re interested in establishing a new internship program or making improvements to an existing one.
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Thank you all for being here today. Remember that each effort we put towards supporting internships contributes to the growth of our Ruby community. Let’s continue to connect and support one another.
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Feel free to sign up for follow-up meetings where we can dive deeper into specific topics or projects together, continuing our work towards effective internships.
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Let’s commit to being advocates for change in our industry, supporting both new and seasoned developers as they navigate their careers in Ruby and beyond.
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Thank you all once again, and I look forward to continuing these vital conversations.