Concerns About Internship Program

Question:

Next semester a college student will be shadowing the head of our mortgage department. Are there any concerns we should have besides privacy and customer information security?

Answer:

I really like internship programs -- and I hope that this one works for you. The primary concerns when bringing in "outsiders" -- even temporarily and for a worthwhile program such as this -- are:
- Who are they?
- What/where will they have access to?
- When will they have access to the facility?
- How will you monitor them?

If the person is older than 18 years, please conduct a background investigation on him/her, talk with his/her school counselor to determine the scope of the student's assignment, have him/her sign off on your institution's confidentiality agreement and employee handbook -- and meet with him/her before work starts to define your security and other expectations. These folks need to be treated and trained as employees -- and remember that your other employees will quickly treat the student as "just" another employee.

First published on BankersOnline.com 1/31/05