What is an internship?

An internship is an opportunity for interns to get work experience in a professional setting. Intern placements typically last for a predetermined period of time. While internships are common for college students, you can also consider new graduates, job seekers and other candidates. You may decide to make a job offer after that point.

Developing an intern program can be an effective way to find and train candidates who are interested in building a career with your company.

How internships can benefit a business

Creating an effective internship program can benefit companies of all sizes, from startups to well-established businesses. 

Consider these potential benefits of an internship program:

Connect with new talent

Interns are often motivated to learn and eager to refine their skills. A well-designed internship program can tap into their enthusiasm, potentially leading to a long career with your business. Consider accepting candidates from all backgrounds, such as students and those wanting to change careers or reenter the workforce.

Create a transition for potential new employees

The internship period may be a valuable opportunity to see if the intern’s soft and hard skills add to your business needs. You can also evaluate their potential as they learn how your business operates, such as whether they demonstrate a willingness to learn, leadership abilities or alignment with company culture.

Boost productivity

Interns can support existing employees by helping them with projects, such as copyediting a quarterly publication for a magazine publisher or shadowing workers on existing projects and providing help where needed. Once the intern is more familiar with their daily responsibilities,  you may be able to assign them more specific or project-based assignments.

Benefit from fresh approaches

Interns may bring knowledge from school or other jobs. They can use their unique perspective to provide ideas for improving internal processes. Consider asking what they think works well and where they see opportunities for improvement. Since interns are typically coming from academic settings or other industries, they may introduce new ideas, technologies or trends that help the company innovate.

Give current employees a chance to be mentors

Internship programs can also benefit employees who are ready to build or refine their leadership abilities. As mentors, they can apply their management skills and learn to delegate tasks, assess performance and offer guidance and feedback. This might also highlight future leadership opportunities for current employees.

How to develop an internship program

Creating an internship program can attract candidates from various backgrounds, including students, career changers, returning professionals and individuals from different educational paths. 

Consider the following steps when developing your own internship program:

1. Determine the scope of the program

Decide how you want the internship program to fit into your business structure based on your needs, resources and budget. You might ask the following questions:

• How many interns can you accommodate and how often?
• Where will they work, and who will supervise them?
• What work is available?
• How will interns be compensated?
• How long will internships last?

2. Designate an employee to oversee internships

Hire a Program Manager or Department Manager to oversee all aspects of the program, including recruiting, interviewing, hiring, onboarding, supervising and evaluating performance. Depending on the program scope, you might decide to hire a full-time or part-time employee. Consider promoting from within. Existing employees may be able to use their institutional knowledge to develop a more meaningful and valuable internship program.

3. Get staff and management support

Promote the internship program’s benefits to your employees and explain what you hope to achieve. Encourage employees to get to know the interns, offer their support or volunteer for job shadow days. When the team is enthusiastic about the program, they may be more likely to create a friendly and welcoming atmosphere.

It’s also important to involve upper management in the internship program to help ensure guidance and success.

4. Start shaping the program

Define what you want to achieve with your internship program before you start recruiting interns. Consider factors including:

• Internship program goals
• Expected activities, expectations and opportunities for learning
• Metrics for evaluating intern progress
• Meeting frequency with the intern to provide feedback
• Intern and mentor or supervisor responsibilities
• Role of mentoring
• Ideal qualities for interns
• Probation periods
• Metrics for evaluating the program’s success
• Questions for the exit interview
• Potential path to employment

5. Determine intern duties

An internship program often helps develop various hard and soft skills that can be transferable to future roles. Consider including meaningful and challenging tasks that will help them learn and grow while still providing value to the company. 

For example, you might have journalism interns attend editorial pitch meetings to become familiar with managing a content pipeline. You could also request that they brainstorm several ideas each week to pitch to the Editor-in-Chief (EIC). If your intern pool includes students, you may want to assign them tasks that are aligned with their field of study.

6. Create an intern plan and job description

Write a plan that includes basic details such as dates of the internship, compensation and hours required. You can also include information about the department the intern will work in, such as marketing or sales.

Then, write a job description that specifies the scope of the position. Outline the position’s responsibilities, such as assisting staff with their duties or helping with special projects, and the expected skills. If you plan to place interns in several departments, ask managers from each department to help you customize the job description to reflect specific job duties.

If you’re hoping to attract non-student interns, such as career changers, consider a skills-based hiring process. Emphasize transferable skills and minimize education-related language to attract non-traditional candidates.

7. Prepare to implement the internship program

Before announcing available internships, consider how you’ll implement the program. Consider the following questions:

• What is the recruitment and hiring process? Decide how you’ll reach potential applicants, and outline the interview process you’ll use to evaluate candidates.
• What information does the intern need during onboarding? Make a list of documents, handbooks and resources, and consider what to include on their first day agenda, such as a building tour and an introduction to the employees in their departments.
• Are there specific training requirements? If the intern’s role involves using software or an established set of processes, set aside training time.

Recruiting and selecting interns

Once you have a clear plan for the internship program, you can start recruiting candidates. You may begin recruiting several months before the internship’s start date to give yourself time to choose a quality candidate.

1. Decide where to post internship openings

If you want to reach a diverse range of candidates with your recruitment strategy, consider the following ways to share your internship openings:

• Post the internship on job boards.
• Announce the intern role on social media.
• Add the job posting to your company website.
• Encourage employees to refer potential intern candidates.
• Share the listing with industry contacts.
• Send information to career centers at local colleges and universities.
• Recruit on campuses by engaging with campus organizations and student groups.
• Ask college departments or faculty members to distribute information to students or post it on campus bulletin boards.

Expanding your search beyond traditional university settings can help you connect with a broad pool of students and non-students.

Provide an overview of the application process and clarify which documents applicants should submit, such as a cover letter, resume or job portfolio. Make sure the selection process is transparent, inclusive and unbiased by evaluating candidates based on a standard set of criteria and making accommodations where possible.

2. Conduct interviews and select candidates

Once you’ve selected candidates, schedule interviews as soon as possible. During interviews, ask questions that focus on relevant skills, career plans and motivation. When a candidate accepts your offer, send a welcome email to confirm the internship and outline the next steps. Consider sending an email announcement to inform staff of the internship’s start date.

Consider accepting international candidates

Welcoming international candidates into your internship program can also enrich your organization with new perspectives and valuable skills. If your company has a global audience, your interns may have useful insights and cultural tips.

If you decide to accept international interns, provide clear guidance and support throughout the hiring process to help improve the international intern experience.

Onboarding and supporting interns

A comprehensive onboarding process can be beneficial in helping interns feel welcomed and successful in your internship program. 

Consider the following onboarding tips to create a positive and productive internship experience that benefits both the intern and the company.

1. Arrange onboarding and orientation

The first few days of the internship should be dedicated to the onboarding process. You may schedule time for:

• Completing paperwork with human resources (HR)
• Going over company policies and procedures
• Introducing their mentor and other staff
• Setting up email, accounts and passwords
• Educating about the organization, products and services
• Reviewing duties and job responsibilities
• Touring the office and facilities
• Training on software and programs
• Discussing company culture

2. Provide opportunities to learn

As interns begin the program, consider offering learning opportunities such as:

• Rotating through departments
• Shadowing senior executives
• Attending meetings
• Participating in training programs, workshops and conferences
• Spending time with managers to ask questions
• Managing small projects independently

3. Meet with your intern regularly

Consider having the intern’s supervisor provide a weekly report on their duties and accomplishments to ensure they’re meeting their goals. It’s also an excellent opportunity to assess their workload and use performance assessments to provide constructive feedback.

Meeting with interns regularly helps ensure they have the resources they need to meet their learning objectives. It also creates a framework for ongoing support, giving them an opportunity to build relationships and strengthen their connection to your organization.

Conduct an exit interview

Before the internship ends, ask each intern to provide feedback about their experiences. This information might help you assess the program and make adjustments in the future.

Questions to include in your exit interview may include:

• Which responsibilities and projects were most helpful?
• Did they feel challenged?
• What are they taking away from the program?
• How would they improve the program?

You can also offer feedback about the intern’s strengths, areas for improvement and ways to develop additional skills or enter the next stage of their career. During the interview, you can also discuss the possibility of hiring the intern as a full-time employee.