Intern Tales
From incompetent interns to diabolical bosses, everyone has a good internship story to tell. We asked you, our lovely readers, to send us some of your most hilarious and horrific memories. Here are our favorites. By HK Staff, readers and interns (mostly interns). Illustrations by Cecilia Cheng and Ryan Chan.
Idiot Interns
Snooze You Lose
“I had an intern two years ago who spent the entire day sleeping at her desk. She would cover her desk with tissues, and then just sleep on it. I thought she was bored, so one day I asked her if she wanted to go out for an assignment. She looked me in the eye, said ‘No,’ and then went back to napping. After about three weeks of sleeping in the office, she just didn’t show up for work anymore. I was relieved, because I was actually scared of her.”
What a Burn
“A friend of mine who was interning met the VP of the company during happy hour. He joined their table, and my friend got really drunk. While my friend was out for a cigarette break, the VP was leaving and went in for a handshake. But she was so drunk that she dropped her cigarette into his hand instead.”
No.1 Selfie
“Last year, my friend interned at an investment bank and all he did was take selfies all day. He got a great reference letter.”
Dead End
“I handed a page from the SCMP to our intern to make a coverage report for our client. She handed it back to me, asking if the box at the bottom was the correct article. I told her it was an obituary notice. She didn’t last long.”