The Benefits of an Internship

For Companies

For students

Internship Definition

An internship is commonly a short period of work experience that is offered by an organization for a brief time, commonly around 16-20 weeks. Internships were originally tailored to medical graduates; however, internship opportunities have been opened to a multitude of careers in business, nonprofits, government agencies, and more.

Five Benefits That Interns Can Bring to a Company

Dear Company,

Interns bring fresh and outside perspectives to the company. Bringing an intern onto your team for a few months can result in a rise in productivity, overall company growth, and an improvement in the environment. In the business setting, interns are commonly college students or recent graduates, meaning they have little professional work experience. However, this group is often the most eager to learn and willing to take on any project or task handed their way. Companies that utilize the help of interns can actually see their own employees break through creativity blocks on tedious projects with the help of a fresh perspective.

Interns create a need for reinforcement of leadership roles. Since an intern is new to the game, someone within the organization must step up and be a mentor. This can, of course, be more than one individual, but at minimum, one employee should be willing to delegate tasks, projects, and lessons to the intern. While this may take some time, the outcome will offset the initial investment if it’s done properly. Interns can independently tackle lower-risk items to keep projects moving forward while other work gets done in tandem.

Interns introduce new talents from a younger generation. Whether your team seems to have a creative block or is spending more time trying to figure out a platform than being fluent with it, an intern can be a great help. The average age of an intern in 2023 was anywhere from 18-23 years old (also known as Gen Z). Gen Z is a technological generation fluent in the majority of social media platforms that marketers focus on. These interns are crucial for giving and spreading information they have acquired from their generation to increase insights and keep up with the ever-changing social landscape.

Interns have the potential to increase exposure for your company. Depending on the intern enjoying their experience, your company can receive increased exposure from social media, college communications, or simply from word of mouth. If an intern values the opportunity given to them because of their knowledge, experience, and networking possibilities, they are likely to speak highly of the organization. All it takes is one intern who returns to school and praises the company they spent their summer with until internship applications multiply for the following year.

Interns are a low-risk, high-reward for companies. Typical internships occur during the summer months, normally for 16-20 weeks. Therefore, interns are a low risk for a company due to their temporary nature. While it is beneficial and educational for an intern to be put on many different projects and tasks, that does not have to be a promise. Interns can be brought on for a short period to give extra hands to lower demanding tasks.

Five Benefits That Companies Can Give to an Intern

Dear Interns,

Internships provide valuable real-life experience. Internships are among the most valuable opportunities to participate in before starting your career. By gaining experience in the real world, you can gain insights into what your expected major can result in. This is a great learning opportunity to assess what you, as a young professional, prefer regarding work culture, daily tasks, and an industry’s overall schedule or operations.

Internships increase your marketability. Internships increase your marketability during the post-graduation time. Having an internship on your resume is not an ‘end all be all’ to landing a good job after college, but it certainly doesn’t hurt. Internships increase employment chances, offer rates, and starting-level positions. According to TechJury, students with internships on their resumes have an 85% increased chance of employment post-graduation. A national survey of college internships conducted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison concluded that students who take an internship are 14% more likely to receive a callback for a job interview and enjoy 6% higher wages once they are hired.

Internships teach you about your future career. Internships allow you to enter the professional business world as a young adult. This can also teach you where your true passion lies. Instead of spending thousands of dollars on a different major each year, you can try the profession before devoting years and money. College Rank reports that 50%-70% of undergraduate students change their major at least once. According to NSCI (National Survey of College Internships), the majority of students (67.9%) pursue an internship to gain experience in a specific field. However, about one in four students intern to explore career options. Without a doubt, students who complete fulfilling internships return back to college with a newfound appreciation.

Internships promote personal growth. An internship is a great environment to work on professionalism and formal communications. This opportunity is a crucial time to hone in and perfect communication skills and teamwork regardless of age, gender, race, and credentials. By showing interest, tracking your growth, and staying committed, you’re more likely to get a good letter of recommendation for your future endeavors.

Internships are beneficial in today’s job market trends. According to NACE’s Internship and Co-op report conducted in 2023, 57.6% of interns were brought on as full-time employees in the year 2022. This number is anticipated to grow as TechJury reports an estimated 4.1 million internship opportunities in the U.S. in 2023. Internships have been popular for some time but are growing at an exponential rate for students and companies. It is best to secure one as early as possible to ensure you will be given the experience you can implement further in your education/future career.

Summary

Internships have benefits for both parties involved, the company and the student. The company can bring on low-risk help that can increase exposure to the business, introduce new talent and trends and reinforce leadership roles. Students who have been given an opportunity to be an intern are able to gain real-life experience in a career and opportunities for personal growth.

Internships bring undeniable benefits to all who are included, but as the saying goes, you only get out what you put in. It is also important to note the difference between paid and unpaid internships. Paid internships are shown to motivate interns more because of the incentive to be hard-working and produce end results. A study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that paid internships lead to full-time offers about 72% of the time compared to only 44% of unpaid internships.

Internships are not one-sided, though. The intern must be excited and motivated to learn, grow, and absorb information at all times, while the company must be willing and excited for a young individual to join the team. Employees have to be willing to help explain and give projects to the intern while at the same time, the intern must have strong communication skills to address questions, provide clarity in workload, and communicate what they wish to receive out of the opportunity.

Here at FifthColor - We are Bold

We test, iterate, and re-test until we get the best results possible. Our clients come to us to be an extension of their team and help take their print and marketing efforts to the next level, achieving things they never thought possible.

As a data-driven organization, our team delivers results. We are agile partners, providing top-quality speed-to-market solutions. We use research and analysis to give us the understanding we need to create a valuable return for our clients because, at the end of the day, it’s not what we like; it’s what we DISCOVER.

The Benefits of an Internship

For Companies

For students

Internship Definition

Five Benefits That Interns Can Bring to a Company

Five Benefits That Companies Can Give to an Intern

Summary

Here at FifthColor - We are Bold

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