THE UNDERGRADUATE INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH INTERN:

This paper describes how undergraduate student interns were utilized in a one-person institutional research office on a small college campus to improve productivity and provide real-life experiences for upper-class students. The pitfalls and benefits of such use of students are discussed from both the students ' and institutional researcher's perspective. Responses to a student intern survey are provided in which students were asked what skills they learned while they were interns; whether they were able to apply these skills elsewhere; in what ways the intern experience helped them in their major and planned career; suggestions they had for improving the internship experience; the most interesting aspects of the internship; and how they would rate their overall experience. Suggestions are made for incorporating such students into the institutional research function. The paper concludes with th