12% of college students won’t participate in an internship

The worth of internships for students’ profession navigation and future employment alternatives is obvious for faculties and lots of employers. However what do students suppose of internship experiences, and the way do they profit them in their future planning?

A brand new report from Handshake, revealed Feb. 20, highlights developments throughout students who’ve and haven’t participated in internships, the affect on their targets past college, and the obstacles that hinder engagement.

Among the many developments current: Extra interns are collaborating in paid internships and incomes above minimal wage whereas doing so, and firm tradition can affect students’ willingness to return for a full-time place.

Why intern? A majority of students stated they pursue internships to construct useful abilities (87 %), to establish attainable profession alternatives (72 %), to make skilled connections (70 %) or to get a leg up in their future job hunt (70 %). About 59 % say collaborating in an internship is an important step towards clarifying their profession targets.

Just one-third of students recognized fulfilling a level requirement as a major issue for pursuing an internship, and simply over half indicated monetary motivation for interning.

Amongst students who’ve accomplished an internship, greater than 80 % say the expertise formed their preferences for industries and job roles. Round 54 % of students stated their internship made them extra assured in their profession targets, and 56 % stated it was important for making progress towards profession targets. One-quarter stated it impressed them to set new profession targets, which may be equally useful.

A winter 2023 Pupil Voice survey by Inside Increased Ed and College Pulse discovered 10 % of students recognized an internship as a high affect on their profession choices for after college.

What hinders internships: Round 12 % of students in the Handshake examine haven’t participated in an internship and don’t count on to take action previous to ending their diploma. The best share of these students say they’re restricted by time (33 %)—overwhelmed by coursework and different commitments—or they’ve utilized for roles and haven’t been chosen (33 %).

“Students might really feel shut out of internships for a spread of causes, starting from packed schedules to monetary and geographic constraints,” the report says. “Even for students who’ve ample time and assets, touchdown an alternative has develop into harder as hiring contracts and competitors will increase, and the appliance course of might really feel overwhelming given the variation in hiring timelines throughout employers and industries.”

Inside information reveals demand for alternatives amongst students that’s outpacing the provision. The quantity of internship postings on Handshake declined 15 % from January 2023 to January 2025, however purposes surged, with 41 % of the Class of 2025 having utilized to not less than one internship by means of Handshake, in comparison with 34 % of the Class of 2023.

Solely half of latest college graduates participated in an internship whereas enrolled in an undergraduate program. Even amongst students who do land an internship, time continues to be restricted, with 56 % of interns concurrently taking courses and 36 % working a part-time job. Round one in eight students stated that their internship required them to work 40 hours per week or extra.

First-generation students had been extra more likely to say they accomplished an internship whereas taking courses or working (80 %) in comparison with their continuing-generation friends (70 %).

Pay day: As faculties and employers contemplate the significance of experiential studying for pupil profession outcomes, extra consideration has been positioned on the worth of honest compensation to cut back fairness gaps in who is ready to participate in internships. Some faculties will present stipends or scholarships for learners who tackle an unpaid or underpaid internship, permitting them to nonetheless obtain monetary assist for his or her work.

Nearly all internships (95 %) posted on Handshake in the previous yr had been paid, which students say is vital to them in choosing an internship position.

A majority of students who participated in an internship had an hourly wage (57 %) or a set wage or stipend (24 %). The very best common fee was for pupil interns working in skilled companies ($35 an hour) or monetary companies ($31 per hour). Students working in hospitality or schooling acquired the bottom common fee of $17.50 an hour.

A expertise pipeline: Internships may be an effective way for a pupil to get a foot in the door of an organization and for the employer to supply coaching and a profession pathway for early expertise. Handshake’s information reveals that the interpersonal experiences students have whereas in their internships can affect their want to carry a full-time position in that firm.

Three in 5 interns stated the mentorship they acquired or didn’t obtain had a serious affect on their degree of curiosity in working full-time for his or her internship employer. About 89 % of students stated workforce tradition not less than considerably impacted on their curiosity in working full-time for his or her internship employer, and 90 % stated the identical of their interactions with colleagues.

Equally, pay was an element that impacted students’ consideration of a full-time position at their employer. Eighty-two % of interns who had a reasonably compensated position would doubtless settle for a full-time supply from their internship employer, in comparison with 63 % of those that didn’t really feel their pay was honest.

After ending their internship, 59 % of students stated their expertise impacted their curiosity in working for his or her employer not less than reasonably, however solely 30 % stated they’d undoubtedly settle for a full-time supply from their employer.

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