Start with what the posting does not tell you
Cross out questions already answered clearly in the posting or conversation. Then choose the largest remaining uncertainty. For a new field, that may be the daily work. For a remote role, it may be feedback and working hours. For an offer you are considering, it may be pay or dates.
Berkeley recommends preparing questions about the position. The comparisons below are a way to investigate a role, not a scoring system that proves an employer is good or bad.
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Ask for the first deliverable
Question: 'What might my first assignment be, and what would a good completed version contain?'
'Help with analysis' still leaves the work unclear. 'Check the weekly order file, investigate exceptions and prepare a summary for the planning meeting' tells you what the intern would produce. Follow with: 'Which parts would I handle myself, and which would need review?'
An example is not a promise that you will receive that exact project. It is a test of whether the team can describe useful work at an intern's level.
Find out how help actually happens
A named reviewer and a workable feedback process tell you more than 'everyone is supportive'. These follow-ups help you get beyond the first answer.
| Ask | If the answer stays vague, follow with… |
|---|---|
| Who would review my work? | Would that person be my day-to-day contact, or would someone else supervise me? |
| How does feedback work? | When an intern's first draft needs revision, what happens next? |
| What should I do when I am blocked? | If my supervisor is unavailable that day, who can help me move forward? |
| How would this work remotely? | Which meetings or written updates would we use, and in which timezone? |
Separate good work from a return offer
Ask: 'At the end of the placement, what would make you say the intern had done useful work?' Listen for an output or behavior the student can influence: a repeatable test, an accurate weekly report or a completed research summary.
If future employment matters, ask how return-offer decisions are made and whether headcount has been confirmed for this cohort. A positive performance review and an available full-time position are different things. Past conversion figures, when provided, need a clear cohort and denominator to be useful.
Send practical questions to the person who owns them
Ask the manager about work and supervision; ask recruiting or HR to confirm pay, dates, location and other offer terms when the manager cannot. 'Who can confirm that before I decide?' is a useful response to an unanswered question.
After the interview, write down what you learned and what remains unresolved. The point is to improve your choice, not to collect questions you can say you asked.