<p>Hey parents,</p>
<p>What do you all recommend that I get my manager / people on my desk as my summer internship finishes. I plan on getting my manager / mentor / and people on my desk a thank you gift. For the desk, I was thinking about getting a gift basket or something similar. Not sure what to get my manager though.</p>
<p>No. Don’t get them anything. It wouldn’t be appropriate. If you want to do something,bring in some food for everyone. Bring some bagels, donuts, or cookies.</p>
<p>Actually, the person running in the internship program sent out a reminder to do so. And, the culture at the place I work is much different than the rest of the street. I don’t have to, but I’d like to. Nothing expensive, just to show my appreciation. Was thinking Godiva chocolates or something for the desk. Something specific for my manager.</p>
<p>I would go to a bakery and some cookies or something. :)</p>
<p>jlazz, I agree that chocolate and food items are great ways to say thank you when you’re leaving. my son is doing in internship overseas and he brought with him a variety of gift items all with his school logo on them: pens, a baseball cap, a t-shirt, chocolate, etc. so if you’re near your school logo items might be a thought. (in the country he’s in, gifts are a very important part of the culture and he was told to bring lots of gifts).</p>
<p>The food suggestions or Godiva chocolates sound fine. What is the nature of the field? Some small related memento related to it might be nice. </p>
<p>I don’t agree about it being inappropriate, though it is not necessary either. </p>
<p>My D just finished a paid internship with an architect in France. First, for her boss (the principal/owner) with whom she worked very closely daily, she came across an illustrated book about a famous architect whom they had discussed that she knew he liked and also he knew that as soon as she left the job, she was going to a famous place he had designed. So, she gave him the book on her last day. </p>
<p>Then, for the administrative assistant who had been very nice to her the entire time, including picking her up at the airport, having her to dinner many times, taking her on two small side trips, including an overnight…my D wanted to get a gift. I arrived in Europe to visit and travel with my daughter the day before her job ended and she wanted me to bring certain things that represented where we are from (Vermont). So, for the assistant, she gave her a big can of local Vermont maple syrup and then maple sugar candies for her children. She also gave a Leatherman (kinda like swiss army knife thing) to the woman’s partner who also had been very nice to her and he had greatly admired my D’s Leatherman and said he could not get that over there. Then, for the two interns who overlapped near the end of my D’s internship, she gave them maple syrup and maple sugar candies. Obviously, you don’t have this cultural thing but I don’t know if you are from a different region than where your internship is located and if so, bringing something native from your area is a nice gesture.</p>
<p>I cross posted with oaklandmom but kinda on the same vein!</p>
<p><a href=“in%20the%20country%20he’s%20in,%20gifts%20are%20a%20very%20important%20part%20of%20the%20culture%20and%20he%20was%20told%20to%20bring%20lots%20of%20gifts”>quote</a>.
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<p>Yes, this differs a lot from country to country. My husband mentors many students from many different countries. No matter how slight his role in helping a student, or even a fellow scholar, every person from east or southeast Asian countries presents him with a gift from the home country. In many cases, it would look like bribery if the gift-giver were American! </p>
<p>I’ve often wondered how these folks manage to get so many gifts into their luggage, and what I would take if the situation were reversed.</p>
<p>midmo, I don’t see it as bribery as my D gave the gift on her final day there. BEFORE she gave the gift, her boss handed her a written recommendation and also gave her an additional month’s salary because he was so pleased with her work. He had been very nice to her, including helping find an apartment and furnishing it. I feel her gift was small and had meaning as it was about an architect that they had discussed. </p>
<p>She did not fit anything in her bags. She bought the book in Germany I believe while overseas this summer. It so happened that the native things from VT…that I was arriving on her next to last day of the job to travel with her and I brought the heavy gifts. 
I suppose if we had thought of it ahead of time, she’d have had to buy something tiny and lightweight…I kinda like the college logo things someone else suggested.</p>
<p>^^^soozievt, I wasn’t referring to the kind of situation your daughter was in; of course that is not bribery.</p>
<p>What I wrote was in reference to interns in this country. I have two interns this summer. It would have been strange or inappropriate for them to give me gifts. As far as I was concern, it was all business. One of them did ask me if he could do something to thank everyone in the group. I suggested for him to bring some food in for everyone.</p>
<p>My daughter is starting a banking internship in Sydney this week. The secretary did a lot to help her with her scheduling and apartment search. I packed a scarf for her to give to the secretary.</p>
<p>MIDMO:
I realize you were not commenting on my D’s situation, no worries. I think you were commenting on Americans giving gifts in internships and how they might be seen as bribery. I think if it is given when the person is truly leaving, it won’t be seen that way and it should be very small in nature and have some sort of meaning or else just some food or something. I will admit, however, that D did not give any gift when she left her internship of the same nature in NYC last summer!!! But I do think her internship this summer was different in some ways and more personal and the couple people she worked with were very nice to her outside the office as well and so she wanted to thank them for that (plus it was in a different country and everything).</p>
<p>Cross posted with Oldfort. I do tend to agree pretty much. As I said, Ds have not given gifts in similar situations in this country. But I guess the current internship overseas did have some personal attention outside the office…the apartment assistance, furnishing of it, having her over and taking her places and so on. Another summer she interned for an architect office in Paris and did not give gifts but it was a bigger office and was all business. This summer’s internship was a very very small office and very personalized.</p>
<p>I don’t think there’s any need to bring in anything and think it’s weird that the person running the internship program would send out a reminder to do so.</p>
<p>If you want to do something anyway then something like cookies or donuts is decent and appropriately inexpensive. Godiva chocolates seems to me to be over the top as they’re ridiculously expensive for what you get and more than what should be expected from a starving student intern. You could also see what Costco has that might be appropriate since most of their items like this are inexpensive but good - like the big cookies, cupcakes, a cheesecake/carrotcake, etc.</p>
<p>With end of internship gifts, I would definitely consider the nature of the internship when deciding what is appropriate. For internships in other countries, internships in the U.S. in small offices, or internships even in larger offices where you exclusively worked for 1-2 people, I think gifts could be appropriate. In many of the preceding circumstances, the person for whom the intern is working will take the intern under their wing; this could be work related but also things such as having the intern over to their house for dinner, showing them around town, including them in summer events if they know that they are new to the area and by themselves for the summer etc. In such cases, I think professional gifts like books, pens, college logo items, or hometown items can be appropriate. </p>
<p>In larger programs though, it’s mostly business and it may seem weird to buy gifts. If you really want to do something, picking up bagels or a cookie tray or something of that nature for the whole department/group may be the way to go; that way the last day can be a bit of a celebration without making any particular gift recipients feel awkward. Also, in larger programs where you with a whole intern class, I’d be weary of giving gifts; if the whole class wants to pool together a few dollars and do something, that’s fine, but if you’re the only one giving gifts it will be awkward – the others may think you’re trying to make them look bad. Of all my internships, I only gave gifts twice – once in a 50 person brokerage where I exclusively worked with one broker and his assistant, where I gave them both business/finance related books, and once in a law firm where I contributed along with the rest of my intern class to a gift/spa certificate for the manager of our intern program.</p>
<p>I like the cookie bouquet type of idea. Other similar ideas might be the popcorn baskets and fruit baskets. If there is a certain person you want to thank, a small plant for his or her office would be nice. But no need to go overboard on any of it. A sincerely written note of thanks is most meaningful.</p>