Often, the success of the company is tied together with a team of competent individuals who are consistent with quality work. However, with many individuals who are seen to be capable and successful lined with many achievements on their resume, the competition to recruit such individuals tend to be rather vigorous. In order to assemble a successful team, here are some reasons why you should offer a student internship.
Having internship programs that allow students to seek new experiences and learn about the industry would definitely be a win-win situation for both you and the student. You will be able look at the suitability of the individual– whether they fit in the company well and if they are a suitable candidate to become a future full-time employee. From the work ethics, attitude and drive- you can easily identify these qualities through an internship, and subsequently solidify the decision to employ the student in the near future.
If the experience of an internship is positive for both the firm and the student, the student could return for multiple internships in different areas of the company during the holidays while earning a degree. The student could also share their experiences with their friends, giving the firm greater exposure and possibly attracting other suitable candidates, also looking to enter the same field of work.
Challenges you may face
Before offering an internship position, you may face trouble pointing out students who are a suitable fit for the company. There are many ways you could identify them through the massive number of applicants. Even though their resume is lined with achievements, they may still not be suitable for the job. Ranging from their learning attitude, academic achievements, and leadership experiences, there are endless possibilities one could consider before deciding on employing the student.
Even with an established internship program, the less experienced students may require different resources and mentorship styles in order to fully fulfil their potential. You will often need to encourage the students and also show them the potential pitfalls they could avoid while being in the industry. In doing so, this will naturally lead to their success. These firsthand experiences will definitely be valuable to the students. Thus, it is important to properly provide the full internship experience. With more time needed to be catered to these individuals, a summer internship would be the most ideal to bring out the best in the students and allow the firm to benefit as well.
Determine the success of an internship
A successful internship experience would be one where a student would feel increasingly comfortable and confident performing tasks, even without any prior experience. Being able to do tasks with more ease will allow the student to do tasks independently without guidance of a mentor. Taking up more responsibilities, and slowly being recognized as a trusted and respected professional would also further help the student to feel a sense of inclusivity. This would also further solidify the decision of the student choosing to specialize in a specific field.
Each intern and supervisor will exchange feedbacks eventually, and from there they can seek improvements. Through this you can also further alter the internship programs to bring out its maximum potential.
I believe that with an open mind, a company will be successful. An internship which is done well allows both the company and student to reap benefits. This is an outlet to sieve out the confident, bright potential students who are good team players. Moreover, seniors in the company could hone their mentoring and management skills. If you are considering providing this type of early internship experience- you should not hesitate to carry it out.
