YES – Among employers responding to NACE’s 2010 Internship Survey, 83.4 percent say internship programs are designed to help the organization recruit entry-level college hires.
YES – Employers taking part in NACE’s 2010 Internship & Co-op Survey reported that 44.6 percent of their class of 2009 hires came from their own internship programs. That’s a significant increase over last year’s survey results, when employers reported that 35.3 percent of their 2008 new college hires came from their own programs, suggesting that there is greater reliance on internship programs to identify potential full-time hires.
YES – New graduates who took part in an internship program are more likely to have received a job offer than their peers who decided to forgo the experience, according to results of NACE’s 2010 Student Survey. The study found that 42.3 percent of the seniors who had internship experience and applied for a job received at least one job offer. Conversely, only 30.7 percent of seniors without internship experience who applied for a job received an offer.
The study also found that those who had an internship were more likely to accept the offer—and have a job to go to following graduation. One possibility for interns’ higher acceptance rate: a higher salary than the average offered their non-intern counterparts. Survey results show the median accepted salary offer for seniors with an internship was $45,301—nearly 31 percent higher than the $34,601 median accepted salary offer to non-intern seniors.
If those statistics aren’t reason enough to get an internship, here are some other things you gain when you complete an internship:
Internship experience gives you a competitive edge during the interview process.
You meet a lot of people who can make good “networking” connections.
You gain a professional recommendation to add to your list of references.
You get the opportunity to put into action some of the theory you have learned in the classroom. This can enhance classroom learning and help you improve your GPA.
You get the opportunity to develop professional skills and gain insight into the types of skills and abilities employers want.
You develop self-awareness about your own particular skills, character and competency.
You get to “test drive” a company or industry without any long-term commitment.
You get the opportunity to re-evaluate your career goals based on industry and job experience, not guessing.
If you would like assistance in securing an internship, contact Cary Brown in Room 232 of the Wise Campus Center. Please call 485-2269 for an appointment or more information.