Intern: What is the cost of hiring?

What is an intern?

An intern is a temporary employee who joins a company to gain experience in a specific role or industry. Internships can be part-time or full-time and may occur during the academic year or summer. Interns are often students or recent graduates seeking practical experience, but internships can also appeal to individuals changing careers or pursuing training in new fields.

Interns typically support teams by contributing to projects under the guidance of more experienced staff. Some internships are unpaid, while others are paid or offer academic credit. Whether the role is remote, hybrid or on-site, internships should provide meaningful learning experiences and contribute to business outcomes.

Why hire an intern

Interns can play a key role in supporting your workforce, helping teams stay on schedule and allowing other employees to focus on strategic priorities. Hiring interns also helps companies build a pipeline of future full-time candidates. If your team has time-bound projects, seasonal peaks in workload or short-term initiatives that offer learning opportunities, adding an intern may be a practical solution.

Common signs it may be time to hire an intern include:

• Team members regularly working overtime or unable to complete administrative tasks
• Long-term hiring needs that would benefit from early onboarding and training
• Departmental goals requiring short-term research, writing or production support

Contributions of a great intern:

• Assistance with research, content creation, analysis or support tasks
• New ideas and perspectives from individuals immersed in academic study
• A potential path to full-time hiring for high-performing candidates

Defining your hiring needs for interns

Before hiring or creating an internship program, determine what kind of intern your team needs and what you want them to accomplish. Define whether the role is part-time or full-time, paid or unpaid, remote or in-office. Consider the type of supervision and mentorship your team can offer, and how the intern will interact with existing staff. If you’re offering academic credit, coordinate with educational institutions to meet their requirements.

You may also want to evaluate whether an intern is the best option compared to temporary or contract staff. Interns typically require more training and oversight, but they can deliver long-term value and future recruitment opportunities. For some teams, multiple short internships throughout the year are more effective than a single summer program.

What are the types of interns?

Intern roles vary widely depending on your business needs and industry. Some interns work in technical fields, such as software development or data analysis, while others support marketing, HR, finance or customer service departments. You may also tailor internship opportunities based on academic background or specific project goals.

Examples of common intern roles include:

• Marketing intern
• Software Engineering intern
• Human Resources intern
• Data Analyst intern
• Accounting intern

When writing your intern job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on Intern jobs, according to Indeed data:

• Internship
• Intern
• Summer internship
• Remote internship
• Paid internship
• Summer intern
• Marketing intern
• Internship program
• Entry level

Want more hiring insights data for your intern role? Sign in or create your free Indeed account.

Where to find interns

Interns can be found through college and university job boards, trade schools, professional associations and internship directories. Participating in campus recruiting events, hosting information sessions or developing partnerships with career centers can help increase awareness of your roles. Posting your position on online job platforms also expands reach to students seeking remote or seasonal work.

To find the right intern for your business, consider:

• College and university job boards: Reach students actively seeking internships related to their major
• Career fairs: Engage students in person and share opportunities at your organization
• Internal referrals: Encourage current employees to recommend students or recent graduates from their networks
• Internship program directories: Partner with educational institutions that maintain intern placement programs
• Post your job online: Try posting your intern job on Indeed to find and attract quality candidates

Skills to look for in an intern

When hiring interns, focus on skills that support learning, adaptability and collaboration. Many Intern candidates bring strengths from outside traditional work experience, so consider transferable skills gained through schoolwork, volunteerism, part-time jobs or personal projects. A skills-first approach helps you identify candidates who can contribute meaningfully even without a traditional resume.

A successful intern candidate will typically may the following skills and competencies, which may be gained through a variety of experiences, training or education:

• Time management skills and the ability to meet deadlines
• Written and verbal communication skills
• Attention to detail and ability to follow instructions
• Collaboration and willingness to receive feedback
• Curiosity and interest in professional development

In addition to these transferable skills, some roles may require basic familiarity with tools or platforms. For example, a marketing intern might benefit from exposure to social media scheduling tools, while an accounting intern may need beginner-level spreadsheet skills.

Writing an intern job description

Now that you know the key skills, salary expectations, popular job seeker search terms and hiring insights for an intern, you’re ready to write a job description.

A clear intern job description should include:

• A summary of the role and its purpose
• Expected duties and responsibilities
• Required and preferred skills or knowledge
• Any compensation details (paid/unpaid, stipend or credit-based)
• Information about company culture, mentorship and team environment
• Time commitment, work location and expected internship duration

This section should also clarify whether the intern will be evaluated or considered for future employment. Managing expectations from the start helps ensure the intern understands what they’ll gain and what’s expected in return.

Ready to get started? See our full guide for writing intern job descriptions.

Interviewing intern candidates

Because many interns come from a variety of backgrounds and career stages, the interview process should focus on evaluating communication, learning potential and alignment with the role. Ask questions that allow candidates to showcase school projects, volunteer work or personal achievements that demonstrate transferable skills.

Strong candidates for intern positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• Interest in your company or industry
• Examples of collaboration or teamwork in school, clubs or volunteer roles
• Ability to manage competing priorities and deadlines
• Openness to feedback and adaptability
• Career interests and learning goals

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of intern interview questions for examples.