Paid vs. Unpaid: Making Your Summer Internship Offer Stand Out to College Students

Aside from payment, there are many ways you can make your summer internship offer stand out to college students eager to work in your field. You need to think to yourself, ‘What can my internship offer these students that other companies can’t?’ You want your offer to be enticing and very tempting, so here’s what you should consider.

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Compensation

Of course, one thing that is going to really make your summer internship offer stand out to college students is transparency with the pay or the compensation you offer. Consider whether any type of payment is a possibility for your interns at the moment. This could be minimum wage for hours worked, which, of course, can vary based on the project, or it could be a specific stipend for the entire summer.

If payment isn’t an option, you still need to look into different kinds of compensation. For most college students, this can be college credits. Many students are required to have an internship in order to complete their degree, so credits are highly appreciated, regardless of pay or not. Other types of compensation can be free room and board if your program allows or requires your interns to live in a specific area.

However, there are still other ways that you can make your internship offer stand out to these students by offering them even more than simply compensation.

Make Great Connections

When finding a career post-graduation, both you and current college students know how valuable your network is. Having a summer internship, especially if it’s in a field the interns want to work in, will really help grow their network as they make great and valuable connections that can help them in the future.

Provide a mentor to each intern that they can go to with any questions, during and after their internship. Knowing that they have someone reliable whom they can continue to ask questions about the industry throughout the rest of their college career and into their professional one.

Possibility of a Job

Something that is extremely enticing to college students looking for internships is the possibility of turning it into a career. Many internships can turn into either part-time or full-time jobs post-graduation. Advertise if you often hire interns for more permanent positions once the internship has come to an end. This will be very intriguing for any college student, and they will eagerly work very hard to prove themselves as a valuable asset to your team!

However, do not advertise hiring interns if this is not the case. This will get you a bad reputation as college students talk, and future students might not be as willing to take your offer.

Transparency in Tasks

Be honest about what you plan on having your intern do and be specific! The more specific you are, the more likely it is that college students genuinely interested in those responsibilities will come flocking to your internship posting and offer. They will also come to an understanding if they are a right fit for the internships and if the skills they’ll learn here will be valuable to their future career.

State whether they will be acting as an assistant and to what position, if they will be mostly taking notes, if they’ll be working in a team, or if they’ll mostly be a coffee runner. This transparency sets their expectations at a reasonable height, so they know exactly what they are getting into. Avoid vague language that might be confusing or misleading.

Low Barrier to Entry

While, of course, the barrier to entry, also known as the qualifications and requirements, should include something, remember that this is an internship! Internships are as entry-level as positions can possibly get. When you ask for too much, this is extremely daunting as a college student who is just trying to break into the field. Instead, require qualifications such as current enrollment in college, a specific GPA, and either a relevant major or a general interest in the field you’re working on. This will make your internship offer stand out, and students will feel excited about the possibility of working with you to strengthen their skills.

Valuable Experience

Lastly, outline how relevant the experience college students will gain from your internship and how it will propel them forward in their careers. College credit aside, students are really looking for great and relevant experience that they can put on their resumes that will help them advance in their careers. Highlight how valuable this experience is and how it can be difficult to gain when not taking a similar position or internship. The job market is tough, but your internship specifically will help them get ahead of the curve! This will show how your company and the internships you’re offering are great and incredibly useful. You should even consider giving them a unique title that will help their resume stand out as well.

Whether you’re offering payment or not to your interns, there are other aspects you can highlight to make your summer internship offer stand out to college students who will then eagerly accept!