6 Ways to Celebrate Your Interns on National Intern Day

Dear Interns: As the unsung heroes of the workplace, as our future leaders, and as hard workers, we celebrate you. On National Intern Day 2023 and beyond, we celebrate your accomplishments and efforts. 

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In 2017, WayUp created National Intern Day to celebrate the achievements of interns, as well as recognizing the challenges that interns face in the workforce.

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As the day approaches, let's come together to honor and appreciate the efforts of interns nationwide. By celebrating their contributions, empowering them to grow, and providing meaningful experiences, we can create a brighter future for the workforce.

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Searching for intern appreciation ideas? Here are 5 ways you can recognize, reward and celebrate your interns at work on National Intern Day 2023.

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Give a Personalized Note

Simple thank you notes can go a long way – especially when personalized, in the right context, delivered at the right time. Intern thank you notes are a valuable tool not just on National Intern Day, but anytime beyond. Personalized notes make the recipient feel recognized, acknowledged, and appreciated – but it also encourages more productive behavior in the future.

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Want to go the extra mile and reward employees in a tangible way? Consider including a PerkUp reward with your thank you note. These pre-loaded Visa cards allow employees to choose their own incentives.

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Let’s talk about some of the factors that could help you determine which gifts will suit your employees best.

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Reward Your Interns With Gifts

Whether being rewarded after meeting a massive deadline, exceeding expectations in the workplace, or for special occasions like this, National Intern Day is a day to celebrate and reward employees for their hard work – what better way to do so than with gifts?

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From mugs, jackets, hats, shirts and other company swag to wireless earbuds, flowers, or candles – sending the right gift to the right intern, based on their interests and likes, can go a long way. Looking for ideas? Here are 15 gift ideas to get you started from the PerkUp team.

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Plan a Team-Building Activity

Whether virtual or in-person, the right team-building activities can help to boost intern morale, create a sense of community within the workplace, and provide meaningful intern experiences. This also gives employees a chance to connect with interns they may not usually work with directly and boost company culture in the process.

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Here are a few of the best National Intern Day activities activities below: 

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• Bowling

• Karaoke

• Movie night

• Team trivia night

• Laser-tag

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Team Breakfast or Lunch

Sharing a meal with employees and interns is a great way to bring teams together, whether food is delivered to the office, specific teams have lunch outside the office, or you decide to have a meal with just the interns themselves. 

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Additionally, you can opt to take interns out for breakfast or lunch with their direct managers or leadership team to reflect on their accomplishments and work-performance, while also answering any career questions they might have. Learn more about the importance and relevance of team lunches here.

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Invest in Health and Wellness

With the nature of work in 2023, from interns and employees – health and wellness means more now than ever and is one of the best ways to support interns in the workplace.

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Interns especially are looking to balance their mental and physical health, often working in tandem with completing academic studies; one of the best ways to celebrate National Intern Day and support interns in general is to invest in health and wellness stipends, programs and tools.

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Plus, wellness and gym benefits are a great way of retaining interns and employees – take it from our friends at Courier, who retain top talent through their flexible wellness programs. 

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Offer Remote-Work Flexibility

Because many interns are in school, either full-time or part-time, on top of work requirements, allowing for remote or flexible work environments can go a long way as an internship best practice. That way, interns can be more efficient and balance their work and academic needs.

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In fact, Forbes estimates that due to the higher productivity and performance rates found within remote work environments, absenteeism is down by 41% and that teleworkers can be up to 35 - 40% more productive than their office counterparts – improving overall internship program success.

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And of course, here at PerkUp, we’re big fans of remote work flexibility!

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Final Thoughts

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Let’s come together to honor and appreciate the efforts of interns across the world and workforce. Together, we can create a brighter future of work. Happy National Intern Day!

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