Questions · Interns

Questions to ask interns, from orientation day to the farewell lunch

Questions for intern managers and program leads: icebreakers for a new cohort, how each intern learns, a midsummer check-in, and the last week, when they work out what they’re taking with them.

  • 17 questions
  • EN + TL on every card
  • Free in the app
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Kumustahan is a bilingual conversation card app: 1,200 questions in English and Filipino across 7 decks, with a short reflection on the back of every card.

Getting to know№ 09

When did you realize a habit you already had was helping you?

Kailan mo na-realize na nakakatulong pala yung habit na meron ka na?

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A note

Helpful habits are not always dramatic. Sometimes you only notice them when life feels a little easier because they are there.

Hindi laging dramatic ang helpful habits. Minsan mo lang sila napapansin kapag mas gumagaan ang life dahil nandiyan sila.

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The questions

17 questions to ask interns

Every question in English and Filipino/Tagalog, word for word from the Kumustahan decks. Open “Back of the card” for the reflection printed on the other side.

Day one, with the whole cohort

5 questions

Playful, quick and nothing to do with their GPA.

  1. Which language would you learn instantly if you woke up fluent tomorrow?

    Kung paggising mo bukas ay marunong ka na ng isang bagong language, ano ang pipiliin mo?

    Back of the card

    Choose the first person you would like to talk to in that language.

    Piliin ang unang taong gusto mong makausap gamit ang wikang iyon.

  2. What comic-book hero name would fit something you are good at?

    Anong comic-book hero name ang bagay sa talento mo?

    Back of the card

    What problem would your hero solve?

    Anong problema ang kayang ayusin ng hero mo?

  3. Choose a fake job title that fits your personality.

    Pumili ng fake job title na bagay sa personality mo.

    Back of the card

    A fake title can be more accurate than a real one. It gives a playful name to the thing people already notice.

    Minsan mas accurate pa ang fake title kaysa real one. Binibigyan lang niya ng playful name yung napapansin na ng tao.

  4. If you could lend someone a superpower for one day, what power would you give?

    Kung mapapahiram mo ng superpower ang isang tao nang isang araw, anong power ang ibibigay mo?

    Back of the card

    Imagine their first reaction when they try the borrowed power.

    Isipin ang unang reaction nila kapag sinubukan ang hiniram na power.

  5. Choose a memory power: remember every name or remember every route you have taken.

    Pumili ng memory power: tandaan lahat ng pangalan o lahat ng daang nadaanan mo.

    Back of the card

    Give your memory power a name. It can sound heroic or completely ordinary.

    Bigyan ng pangalan ang memory power mo. Puwedeng pang-hero o ordinaryo lang.

How they learn best

4 questions

Ask in week one so you can teach the way that works.

  1. If someone worked or studied with you for one week, what would they notice about your style?

    Kung may makakasama ka sa work o school for one week, ano kaya ang mapapansin nila sa style mo?

    Back of the card

    Your style may show in pace, focus, questions, breaks, or how you handle pressure. People notice more than we think.

    Pwedeng lumabas ang style mo sa pace, focus, tanong, breaks, o paano ka humarap sa pressure. Marami palang napapansin ang tao.

  2. When you enter a classroom, meeting room, or café, where do you usually choose to sit?

    Pagpasok mo sa classroom, meeting room, o café, saan ka usually pumipili umupo?

    Back of the card

    Seat choices can reveal comfort, strategy, or pure habit. Somehow we all have a spot our body chooses first.

    May sinasabi rin yung seat choice: comfort, strategy, o habit lang talaga. Minsan katawan na ang pumipili.

  3. When did you realize a habit you already had was helping you?

    Kailan mo na-realize na nakakatulong pala yung habit na meron ka na?

    Back of the card

    Helpful habits are not always dramatic. Sometimes you only notice them when life feels a little easier because they are there.

    Hindi laging dramatic ang helpful habits. Minsan mo lang sila napapansin kapag mas gumagaan ang life dahil nandiyan sila.

  4. What useful skill did someone patiently teach you?

    Anong kasanayan ang matiyagang itinuro sa'yo ng isang tao?

    Back of the card

    Imagine you are teaching the skill now. What would you show a beginner first?

    Isipin na ikaw naman ang nagtuturo nito. Ano ang una mong ipapakita sa baguhan?

Midsummer check-in

4 questions

Halfway through, when the novelty has worn off.

  1. What are you looking forward to over the next few weeks?

    Ano ang inaabangan mo sa susunod na mga linggo?

    Back of the card

    Finish if you like: "The part I cannot wait for is..."

    Kung gusto mo, ituloy: "Ang pinaka-inaabangan ko ay..."

  2. Name one small hope that helps you keep going.

    Magbanggit ng isang maliit na hope na tumutulong sa'yo magpatuloy.

    Back of the card

    A small hope can still carry real strength. It may be quiet, but it is not nothing.

    May totoong lakas din ang maliit na hope. Tahimik man siya, hindi ibig sabihin wala siyang bigat.

  3. Tell us about something you used to avoid that feels less scary now.

    Kuwento mo yung dati mong iniiwasan pero hindi na ganun ka-scary ngayon.

    Back of the card

    Less scary is still movement. You do not have to be fearless to know something has changed.

    Movement pa rin ang less scary. Hindi mo kailangang maging fearless para malaman na may nagbago.

  4. Share the first time you did something on your own and felt more capable afterward.

    Ikuwento ang unang beses mong gumawa ng isang bagay mag-isa at naisip mong, "Kaya ko pala."

    Back of the card

    Finish if you like: "That was when I realized I could..."

    Kung gusto mo, ituloy: "Doon ko naisip na kaya ko palang..."

The last week

4 questions

Help them put the summer into words before they go.

  1. If a friend said you have changed in a good way, what change would you hope they noticed?

    Kung sabihin ng friend mo na nagbago ka in a good way, anong change ang sana napansin nila?

    Back of the card

    The change you hope someone notices may point to what you have been quietly practicing.

    Yung change na sana mapansin nila baka yun yung tahimik mong pinapractice nitong season.

  2. Which compliment have you remembered long after someone said it?

    Anong compliment ang tumatak sa'yo kahit matagal na itong sinabi?

    Back of the card

    The exact words are optional. Notice which part of the compliment stayed with you.

    Hindi kailangan ang eksaktong salita. Balikan kung aling bahagi ng papuri ang tumatak sa'yo.

  3. If you could tell your younger self one piece of good news, what would it be?

    Kung may isang good news kang masasabi sa batang ikaw, ano yun?

    Back of the card

    This is a gentle way to name progress. Not everything is fixed, but maybe there is something younger you would smile about.

    Gentle way ito para makita yung progress. Hindi man ayos lahat, baka may isang bagay na ikakangiti ng batang ikaw.

  4. Name one small wish you have for yourself this year.

    Ano yung isang maliit na wish mo para sa sarili mo this year?

    Back of the card

    Small wishes can still be honest. They may be easier to say out loud because they do not demand a perfect life.

    Maliit man yung wish, honest pa rin. Minsan mas madaling sabihin kasi hindi niya hinihingi na perfect ang buhay.

How to use them

Before you ask

Interns open up when the questions have nothing to do with being evaluated. Most spend their first week trying to look competent, half-sure that anything they ask or answer will end up in a review. A playful cohort icebreaker on day one tells them this place is different.

After that, find out how each one learns. Some want to watch first, some want to try and fail, some need it written down. Knowing that in week one saves you a summer of re-explaining. At the halfway point, check in on something other than the project: what they’re looking forward to, what has stopped feeling scary.

In the final week, ask questions that help them describe the summer. They’ll need those words in their next interview, and they’ll remember the manager who asked.

Good for

  • Intern orientation day
  • Summer cohort socials
  • Weekly intern check-ins
  • Intern lunches with the team
  • Exit conversations in the last week

Tips

  1. Have managers answer the day-one icebreakers too. It flattens the room fast.
  2. Give each intern a buddy who isn’t their manager, and give the buddy two of these questions.
  3. Ask the midsummer questions one-on-one, never in front of the cohort.
  4. Write down one thing each intern said in the last week and use it in their reference letter.

Decks for this

Interns

Frequently asked questions

What questions should I ask interns?

Start with a playful icebreaker for the cohort, then ask each intern how they learn best. Halfway through, ask what has stopped feeling scary, and in the final week, what change they hope people noticed in them.

What are good icebreakers for interns?

Light, imaginative ones that have nothing to do with grades or experience, like a superhero name for something they’re good at or a language they’d learn overnight. Everyone can answer and nobody feels judged.

How do you check in with an intern?

One-on-one, around the halfway mark. Ask what they’re looking forward to and what is easier now than in week one, then what would help for the rest of the summer.

Bring a better question to the table.

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