With National Intern Day fast approaching, now’s the time to start thinking about your plans to celebrate!
We know that internships might look different than in the past, but—whether you’re hosting a virtual or in-person internship program—we encourage you to celebrate your interns and all you’ve accomplished! To help, we’ve put together a list of activities and ideas that can connect you and your interns for a fun-packed celebration, even virtually.
We hope this helps, and can’t wait to see how you all celebrate on July 28, 2022!
Don’t forget to share highlights on social media! Just make sure you tag @WayUp and use #NationalInternDay to increase your chance of getting featured.
Have all interns send you a fun fact that only a few people know about them. Upload a group of them into Kahoot! and then do a live trivia game for about 30 minutes with everyone in the intern class over Zoom (or whatever your teleconference system is). Bonus points if you incorporate pictures for "which intern said this?" instead of just names for people to choose from. People like to see themselves on a screen!
Dress up like it's the 1980s or rep your company colors—the options are endless! Dressing up is not only fun, but it’s a great way to get a picture of all your interns to share on social media.
Schedule multiple coffee chats throughout the week with staff and interns to get to know each other. Not only is this a great way to build camaraderie, but it’s also a more personal opportunity for interns to ask employers questions.
Tip: If you’re remote, send your interns a gift card so they can get their favorite cup of coffee or tea and enjoy a drink together on the call!
This is one of our favorite activities to do at WayUp! Learn about your intern’s talents by hosting a show. You never know who may be a classically trained pianist, a fantastic singer, or maybe someone has a quirky ability—like juggling or working a Rubik’s Cube in record time!
Have each team that interns are working on create a Kudoboard for their intern(s) and have the Kudoboard sent to the intern(s) at 9AM on National Intern Day. Team members can upload pictures, videos, GIFS, messages, and so on!
Sharpen your skills while working from home and schedule a virtual cooking class for your interns. Plus, pizza is ALWAYS a good idea!
Whether someone at your company wants to lead a meditation session or download an app to guide you—hosting a session for your interns is a great stress reliever and is known to improve relationships and improve work performance! (Catch WayUp’s team meditating in the New York Times.)
Throughout the day, use your website or social media channels to post about individual interns, or the group as a whole, along with a list of their accomplishments, fun facts about them, “thank yous” from coworkers, etc. This is a great way to show your interns appreciation while, at the same time, showing off your team to prospective clients and recruits.
Everyone knows about the escape rooms you run through and try to find a button to get to the next room, but did you know they’ve gone virtual?! Just like the typical escape room activities with various puzzles and tasks to complete, you and your team have a limited amount of time to achieve the objectives—virtually. It’s an adventure, all from the comforts of your own home!
Have your interns’ coworkers suggest funny superlatives for them like “most likely to bring their pet on a video call'' or “brainstorm champion.” Generate certificates using Canva’s free templates and send them out on National Intern Day or host a virtual awards ceremony!
This is not your average ice breaker setup! Icebreaker splits you up into groups of up to eight where you have the opportunity to have a more intimate conversation. You can choose from the questions provided or come up with your own like, “What has been your favorite part about interning at [company]?”
Get a high-level executive and various other employees to film short 30-second videos thanking the interns individually (or as a group) for all of their hard work. Stitch the videos together in iMovie/Microsoft Photos and send them on National Intern Day or share them at a company-wide meeting.
Put together a celebration kit filled with corporate swag, candy, party favors, balloons, etc., and mail it to each intern for them to open on National Intern Day. Have them take pictures using the kits and share them on social media with thank you messages.
Log onto Zoom or Teams, share your screen, and watch a movie/documentary together or use Teleparty. Interns can come up with a list of their favorites, and then you can take a poll to decide which one. Popcorn is not required, but it’s always encouraged!
Here, the options are seriously endless! Whether each intern creates a TikTok of fun facts about them to share with the team, they do an MTV cribs style video of their office setup, or they make a NID-themed video, your interns will be sure to love this.
Create a group, or divide into smaller groups, to discuss the newest show on Netflix or an interesting podcast. This is a great way to connect with your interns and have extra fun doing so!
Ask employees to share the best advice they’ve been given or their favorite quotes and add them to a virtual wisdom wall. Share this with interns as a personal source of inspiration from their peers. Here’s a template you can use if needed!
Set up a meeting with company leaders where interns can share their ideas for the business. Not only does this show that you respect your interns’ ideas, but it also gives them the chance to gain valuable insights from seasoned professionals.
Simple yet effective, thank you notes are always a good idea! Write out physical letters to your interns listing out what they achieved and what you appreciate about their contributions to the company.
