PSC Internship Programme: Making it a Success

The Kenyan Government’s recently launched internship programme is a great initiative that was long overdue. If well managed, the Public Service Commission (PSC)-run programme could be a revolutionary idea in the nation’s human capital development. It can be very beneficial to both the government as well as the interns. Many a time fresh graduates have missed out on job opportunities simply because they have no relevant working experience in their areas of specialization. This leaves them with a genuine question; where do they get this requisite experience? Internships are meant to solve this problem. They integrate knowledge learned in the classroom with on-the-job experience in the interns’ career field through technical and soft skills learning, executive exposure, opportunities to create innovative business solutions and more. Internships should go above and beyond coffee runs. The interns should be placed in roles getting their hands dirty (at times literally), solving problems and building professional and leadership skills in an environment that will help them grow in their career areas. This process should be geared towards bringing the gap in skills between what is taught in school and the workplace expectations.

To achieve the above expectations the internships need to be properly managed. If this is not done the programme will be end up being not just an ineffective use of public resources but also a missed opportunity to tap into the creativity, innovativeness and the fresh ideas that these young graduates bring. The interns will just end up with the twelve monthly stipends that they get and no significant skills development. Mark you, there are some unpaid internship programmes that leave the interns with a huge, lasting positive impact in their careers due to the way they are structured and implemented.

The most effective way to achieve the expected results is by putting in place proper Monitoring and Evaluation systems. The Public Service Commission Internship Policy and Guidelines document which is publicly available on their website clearly states that internship programmes shall be monitored and evaluated to ascertain the extent to which the objectives have been met, and for purposes of instituting remedial measures. Monitoring and evaluation will ensure control and provide information needed for improvement and sustainability of the programme. Evaluation will further establish the extent to which the interns and MDAs (Ministries, Departments and Agencies) have benefited from the programme. For the programme to succeed this policy requirement must be strictly adhered to. The Commission should ensure there are personnel and resources for this purpose. They should start by defining both quantitate and qualitative indicators which will be used to measure the success or failure of the programme. This includes things like projects and special assignments interns have worked on, soft and technical skills exposed to, innovations by interns, number absorbed to public service jobs (permanent or contractual) among others. Close monitoring and reporting on these indicators, preferably on Quarterly basis would help remain within the objectives of the programme. Considering that these interns are spread out across the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Government PSC will need to engage various stakeholders. This leads to the next critical measure required for the success of project namely stakeholder engagement.

Stakeholder engagement: The Commission will need to fully engage the various organizations where the interns are deployed in the entire process from recruitment to the end. This will ensure the entire government owns the programme and not leave it to the PSC. This way every agency of the government will be working towards a common goal. The commission will need to clearly explain the role of the host organizations and in particular the supervisors who are in charge of these interns both in regards to offering the necessary mentorship and support to the interns, monitoring progress and reporting. Engaging these organizations and ensuring they buy into the objectives of the programme will ensure interns are not used just for menial tasks in the office as is often the case. The older staff should be made to appreciate that these are bright young Kenyans who have so much to offer and shouldn’t be subjected to contemptuous treatment. The interns should be allowed and actually supported to come up with innovative ideas at these organizations. Such ideas should be given serious consideration and the viable ones implemented and the owners rewarded or recognized in some way.

Finally, the Government should give the interns from this programme first priority whenever entry job opportunities arise. It doesn’t make sense to train these interns for a whole year and yet when recruiting for entry jobs you pick others who have zero experience in public service. It beats the whole purpose of using internships to offer hands-on job experience.