[honeychile]

I've only ever had/trained two interns. Both times, we sat down on the first day and discussed what I needed and expected, and what the intern needs and expects to learn. If an intern is just there for basic office procedures, it's an entirely different story than if they're there to learn a particular skill (ie: a specific type of research, etc). I also asked that they would be cooperative, and if they make a mistake, to tell me so that we could work it out together as a learning experience.

I personally feel that the mentor/intern relationship is very important, and the intern should never be considered a "slave". A go-for at times, yes; a slave, no.

Beyond that, I would think that adpiucf has most of the angles covered!

ETA: Each time I was an intern, I always sent whomever was responsible for helping me get the position a thank you gift, even if it's something small (a box of candy, home made cookies, etc) along with a heartfelt thank you note. It keeps the door open for the next year, or for the "real job"!