Handwritten Thank You Note + ... ?

January 12, 2016 1:09 PM

What's an appropriate gesture for my mentors as my "internship" ends?

Background:
I'm an older, mid-career IT professional who finally finished her BS last year. I then landed a paid internship that lasted a good six months longer than they expected, as they found my skillset useful for other projects. (It was acknowledged at that point that they were using me beyond typical "intern" level stuff, but that there wasn't a f/t position in the budget to transition me into.)
With the new year's planned projects and budget, they (say) they can't justify keeping me on because of downtime so my internship is ending.

I'm planning on writing the three people I reported to (the CIO, a manager, and an analyst) nice notes thanking them for the opportunity and for helping me build my skills, etc. My instinct is to include a small gift.. but what? Amazon gift cards? I'd do Starbucks but I've never seen any of them drink coffee. Or is the note enough?

posted by ApathyGirl to Work & Money (9 answers total)

Best answer: Just the note. Gifts to superiors are fraught with peril.
posted by Etrigan at 1:16 PM on January 12, 2016 [9 favorites]

Best answer: Just the note is fine. If you knew them well enough and they were "things" kind of people such that you knew exactly what you wanted to give them then a small item would be totally appropriate, but it it totally not necessary. And when I say small item, I mean more a pretty mug, a $10-20 novelty/toy from ThinkGeek, homebaked cookies, a swank mechanical pencil, etc. Somehow a gift card from an intern feels wrong; even with a paid internship the money means more to you than it does to them.
posted by aimedwander at 1:22 PM on January 12, 2016 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Please, just the gift card. As a supervisor, I can say with experience that anything else is awkward.
posted by decathecting at 1:33 PM on January 12, 2016

Best answer: Sorry, I meant to say just the thank you card. No gift card. Never anything that cost you money. It feels really awkward to accept.
posted by decathecting at 1:40 PM on January 12, 2016 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Oooh! I've done this! I gave my mentors and trainers a bit of tea and a tea infuser! They loved it! Teeny-tiny but says "thank you." If you have a dollar store around, you could throw in a cute mug too.

And for our super-awesome maintenance guy this past Christmas, I gave him a teeny-tiny grater with like, 5 nutmeg seeds. He's an excellent baker (and sometimes brings us girls sweet treats), so I thought: fresh nutmeg for a baker.

Oh geez - okay I didn't see superiors. I've never given gifts upwards...
posted by Dressed to Kill at 1:41 PM on January 12, 2016

Best answer: Agreed that gifts given upwards are just awkward. I'm in a different profession (professor), but every time I've gotten a gift from a student, it just feels weird. I SO appreciate thank you notes though, and they really make my day (and I save them forever).
posted by rainbowbrite at 1:55 PM on January 12, 2016

Best answer: DEFINITELY no gift cards to superiors from interns, especially C-level employees. That sort of thing is really supposed to go downstream. A nice, thoughtful note really is enough. If you really know them well enough to pick something very inexpensive like tea or a book that you are 100% sure they will like and it's more like "I saw this and thought of you", that's okay, I guess, but seriously, a nice note is all that's required.
posted by The Elusive Architeuthis at 2:30 PM on January 12, 2016

Best answer: Having been in the position where someone I supervised gave me a gift (this was holiday related instead of intern-related, but principal applies), I can reiterate - don't do this:
a) it was super awkward
b) I was required to report it internally, causing work I didn't need
c) created awkwardness among his colleagues also (not relevant in your case) as they didn't do a holiday gift, nor did they receive one from him
d) made me uncomfortable for a couple weeks after when I had to give him negative feedback or ask him to re-do something - this is maybe more about me than him, and not relevant in your situation, but something to be aware of
Just a note is perfect.
posted by darsh at 8:16 AM on January 13, 2016

Response by poster: Well, the consensus seems clear. Thank you notes only it is.
Thanks, everyone!
posted by ApathyGirl at 11:00 AM on January 13, 2016