Many Internships Offer a Direct Path to Jobs

 

A survey recently found that Facebook pays its interns² $8,000 a month, more than any other American company.

The survey was carried out by the website Glassdoor, on which people can post information about job experiences and pay.

In second place was Microsoft, which pays its interns $7,100 a month. Oil company ExxonMobil came in third at $6,500. It was one of only a few non-technology companies to make the top 25 list. Amazon and Apple interns earn $6,400 a month, while Google pays $6,000, according to the survey.

These internships pay much more than the average American earns. The government estimated the average U.S. pay in 2015 was about $4,000 a month.

Paid vs. unpaid⁴ internships

One thing that has changed over the years is that many companies now use the same methods for recruiting interns as for full-time⁵ employees.

Ed Koc is the Director of Research, Public Policy and Legislative⁶ Affairs for the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). He says companies now come directly to colleges hoping to find interns who will later become permanent employees.

“They’re very selective in terms of who they choose to bring on board. Particularly because they want to be able to convert that student into a full-time hire once that internship³ is over.”

This means that students should be preparing for internships in the same ways they would for a real career job.

Paid vs. unpaid internships

One thing that has changed over the years is that many companies now use the same methods for recruiting interns as for full-time employees.

Ed Koc is the Director of Research, Public Policy and Legislative Affairs for the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). He says companies now come directly to colleges hoping to find interns who will later become permanent employees.

“They’re very selective in terms of who they choose to bring on board. Particularly because they want to be able to convert that student into a full-time hire once that internship is over.”

This means that students should be preparing for internships in the same ways they would for a real career job.

NACE connects U.S. college career service centers and conducts surveys on the job market for graduates. Koc said at companies the organization works with, about 52 percent of interns end up getting full-time jobs.

He said research also suggests that interns working in paid internships get hired faster than those who are not paid.

“The primary reason for that is that the employers that provided paid internships actually were the ones hiring the students. They were looking at them in a probationary⁷ fashion.”

According to a NACE survey, students who completed paid internships with private, for-profit companies received $53,521 in starting pay. Those who took unpaid internships received an average starting offer of $34,375.

Another NACE study found that unpaid internships led to decreased levels of job satisfaction. They also resulted in less development of skills than paid internships. But unpaid interns gained a better understanding of their career field and some increased their academic performance, the research showed.

William Goodloe is President and Chief Executive Officer of the not-for-profit Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO). He says many companies have found that an internship is a much more valuable recruiting tool than a job interview.

“What they find is that interviews are not as reliable as they would like. But if you get to work with someone - observe them for 10 weeks - then you have a much better sense of if you want to ask them back full-time after they graduate from college.”

The SEO Career program recruits and trains college students and places them in paid internships. The organization works with “underserved and/or underrepresented” students, including African Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans.

SEO reports that 80 percent of its interns end up getting full-time job offers. Goodloe noted⁸ that one problem with unpaid internships is that they limit the candidates to only those with enough money to support themselves.

Co-op programs

Besides internships, some schools offer students another kind of work experience, called co-operative (co-op) education. Co-op students balance classroom study with full-time employment throughout the school year. The students are paid by companies while working during extended breaks from academic studies.

The University of Cincinnati (UC), in the Midwestern state of Ohio, started the first American co-op program in 1906. Today, it has partnerships⁹ with more than 1,800 companies. Depending on the area of study, most co-op students at UC earn between $12 to $27 per hour. This would be equal to yearly pay of $25,000 to $56,000.

Some UC programs, including engineering, design and architecture, require students to complete co-op programs. In others, students can choose between a co-op or internship.

Kettil Cedercreutz is the head of UC’s Division of Experience-based Learning and Career Education. As with internships, he says companies now use co-ops as a major recruiting tool.

“Right now we have an average of 98 percent placement rate in co-op jobs. Then what happens when they graduate, they have 20 months of practical experience in their major under their belt.”

Cedercreutz said co-ops can also be good for students’ academic performance and help them reach their graduation goals.

“In a co-op program they actually do graduate on time. To a very large extent because they learn something in the classroom and then they go out in industry and get to apply it - and they get to sort of digest it.”

UC also operates international co-op programs in which students study languages and then go to work at companies in Japan, Germany and Singapore.

Words in This Story

intern¹ – n. student or recent graduate who works at a company to get experience

recruit – v. find suitable people to work for a company

convert – v. change from one system or position to another

hire - n. someone hired by a company for a job

probationary – adj. period of time in which a person is tested to see if they are able to perform a job

reliable – adj. able to be trusted to provide what is needed

belt – n. long, thin piece of material worn around the waist

digest – v. read and understand new information

1 intern   

v.拘禁，软禁；n.实习生

参考例句：

• I worked as an intern in that firm last summer.去年夏天我在那家商行实习。
• The intern bandaged the cut as the nurse looked on.这位实习生在护士的照看下给病人包扎伤口。

2 interns   

n.住院实习医生( intern的名词复数 )v.拘留，关押( intern的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Our interns also greet our guests when they arrive in our studios. 我们的实习生也会在嘉宾抵达演播室的时候向他们致以问候。 来自超越目标英语 第4册
• The interns work alongside experienced civil engineers and receive training in the different work sectors. 实习生陪同有经验的国内工程师工作，接受不同工作部门的相关培训。 来自超越目标英语 第4册

3 internship   

n.实习医师，实习医师期

参考例句：

• an internship at a television station 在电视台的实习期
• a summer internship with a small stipend 薪水微薄的暑期实习

4 unpaid   

adj.未付款的，无报酬的

参考例句：

• Doctors work excessive unpaid overtime.医生过度加班却无报酬。
• He's doing a month's unpaid work experience with an engineering firm.他正在一家工程公司无偿工作一个月以获得工作经验。

5 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

6 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

7 probationary   

试用的，缓刑的

参考例句：

• After a six-month probationary period, she was confirmed in her post. 经过六个月的试用期之后，她获准正式任该职。
• After a three-month probationary period, she was confirmed in her post. 经过三个月的试用期后，她获准正式任职。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 partnerships   

n.伙伴关系( partnership的名词复数 )；合伙人身份；合作关系

参考例句：

• Partnerships suffer another major disadvantage: decision-making is shared. 合伙企业的另一主要缺点是决定要由大家来作。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• It involved selling off limited partnerships. 它涉及到售出有限的合伙权。 来自辞典例句