is it normal to not get the tasks listed in the job listing?
i'm an undergrad intern at a private practice (i'm a psych major). due to HIPAA regulations i can't do much work with patients, so i expected to do a lot of admin work. on the listing where i found the job (handshake), the responsibilities said interns "will learn about scheduling clients, verifying benefits, record keeping, HIPPA regulations, interfacing with staff, landlord, and other service providers". i've been here once a week since late january and i've done none of these.
my day (12:00-5:00) consists of going into facebook groups and looking for people that need referrals to our practice, making instagram posts on canva, and maintaining the office like vacuuming and restocking the little coffee machine area. when i finish all that i just pretend to look busy until i leave or i do homework. i feel absolutely useless at this internship. sometimes i even do tasks that aren't even related to the internship. once, my boss asked me to help her husband's assistant design a business card for his business. other times i just do personal tasks for my boss that make me feel like her assistant, like calling her car dealership or picking up a package.
i want to preface i don't really get anything out of this internship. i am not being paid, the commute is two hours one way and costs $11 per commute due to public transportation, and this is also not an internship i'm being required to do by my college. due to this, i already didn't expect to do much at this practice, but i didn't expect this little work.. is this normal? obviously i won't be leaving because i'm already halfway through the semester and therefore halfway through my internship, but i still feel lost. what do i do?
Posted Mar 27, 2026, 8:15 PM UTC