Employers looking to attract the next generation of talent are relying on paid internships as more high school and college students compete for increasingly beneficial opportunities.
Students aren’t taking traditional unpaid internships anymore, said Michelle Simmons, the project director for 757 Regional Internship Collaborative. Funded by a $250,000 grant from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, the program aims to connect prospective interns with employers.
“If you’re going to be treating them as an employee, you should be paying these kids,” she said.
A survey of 2,307 graduating college seniors this year shows 62% had worked an internship, and of those, 59% were paid, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers.
The average hourly pay for interns in Virginia was $15.98 in August 2022, according to research of listings across 100 industries this year by CashNetUSA. Still, about about 10.9% of internships analyzed in the state were unpaid.
Companies experienced labor shortages during the pandemic, which gave more leverage to students, said Jaedda Hall, director of emerging workforce programs with the Hampton Roads Workforce Council.
And while there is an influx of internship applicants in certain industries, Generation Z has certain priorities they are not willing to give up. Pay is an important driver for this generation of recent college graduates about to enter the workforce, according to a Great Place to Work survey of 32,000 Gen Z workers.
“The job seeker is expecting more from the employer,” Hall said. “So, it’s not just about your role. It’s about the culture of the company. It’s about the benefits. And you know, is it going to be a remote or hybrid environment where I can still kind of live my life?”
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Path to full-time career
Malik Hairston, a master’s student at Hampton University, spent the past two summers working on projects at Virginia Beach-based Breeden Construction with experts in his field.
The construction development intern said the experience not only confirmed he wanted to pursue a career in architecture, but taught him skills that he was able to bring back to school.
“You learn a lot in doing your homework and everything, but the true knowledge comes from the internship,” Hairston said.
For students like Hairston, having paid internships allows them to pursue a position in their field while also receiving the hands-on experience that can lead to a full-time job after graduation.
Multiple former interns have gone on to become employees at Breeden, and the company plans to extend more full-time offers, said Corbin Matacunas, Breeden marketing manager.
Interns at Breeden Construction participate in a nine-week program with three-week rotations through project management, field management and either pre-construction or development.
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Thousands of applications
Depending on the year, LifeNet Health in Virginia Beach can receive up to 4,000 internship applications, said Kelly Laffey, a director within the not-for-profit company. But students are competing for 12 to 14 spots for 10 weeks each summer.
Another recruiting tool is interns can receive paid holidays, lunches and weekly golf lessons, she said.
LifeNet develops biotech products such as skin grafts and heart valves in addition to facilitating organ donation in Virginia. The goal of the internship program is to have students bridge the gap between what they are learning in school and applying it to their desired career, Laffey said.
“The end result is far beyond skill development,” she said. “It’s about making a difference.”
Amanda Wilder, a student at Old Dominion University, said her internship with the production and logistics engineering team at LifeNet Health allowed her to develop her technical skills working with microscopes and 3D printing.
“My team really trusted me to take responsibility of very important projects,” she said.
Shanita Byrd, executive vice president of employee engagement and development at Atlantic Bay Mortgage Group, agreed on the importance of giving interns more meaningful opportunities beyond fetching coffee. The firm paid interns $15 per hour this summer.
“It’s not just sitting there and watching someone do their job, but they are a part of the team,” Byrd said.
For others, the opportunity to work in a professional setting can sometimes lead them down different paths. The exposure to the job helps students make decisions about their careers, including deciding not to pursue a line of work, and that’s OK, Byrd said.
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Bringing new perspectives to workplaces
Aside from filling positions, employers find interns can bring new ideas and help build skills in their existing employees.
Douglas Higinbotham, a senior staff scientist at Jefferson Lab in Newport News, has been mentoring students and interns for over two decades. He believes having interns keeps employers “on their toes.”
“Sometimes, when you become a specialist in anything, right, you’re here and you’re so focused on your field. You encounter everything about it and you miss the simple questions,” he said. “And the students will come in here and they’ll ask you a question you haven’t thought about and you’ll go ‘Oh, wow.'”
At Breeden, having employees act as mentors to interns helps develop their coaching skills and instills a sense of pride and responsibility, Matacunas said.
“I really think their interactions with the interns brings a fresh perspective as well as innovative ideas to our organization and stimulates creativity and problem-solving within the teams beyond the program,” he said.
Gabby Jimenez, gabrielle.jimenez@virginiamedia.com
