Interns – Recruiting Tomorrow’s Top Talent

According to The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), employers tend to offer full- time employment to two out of three interns and of that statistic, 70% accept the job. Why is this so important? Because an internship program is one of the most effective recruiting practices a company can utilize to find top talent. How can you maximize your intern recruiting efforts? Read on.

Before you can bring an intern or two into the fold, you first have to know where to find the best candidates. Because of their involvement with both teaching and research, grad assistants are a great source for intern leads. They’ll know which potential intern is a shining star and which to steer clear of. Current interns and last year’s graduates are another source of potential interns. Finally, talk with academic advisors, student mentors and even place ads in the campus newspaper. 

Now that you have a pool of interns to choose from it’s time to start the recruiting process. There are plenty of ways for making sure you get the lion’s share of star interns. One certain way is to introduce your potential interns to top senior executives. It’s a good practice to have your CEO call the intern personally and encourage them to accept the position. Hold a “Meet the Intern” breakfast for potential interns and senior executives to interact. 

To find the best, you have to go where the best can be found. Location plays a big part in finding the right intern candidates. It’s common practice for many companies to simply post their need for an intern on national job boards and let it ride. While this isn’t necessarily a bad move, it may not provide you with the candidates you’re looking for. A better practice to adopt is to pinpoint job boards closer to the office where your intern will spend most of his or her time. For example, if you live in the northeast Ohio area, interns are being drawn to sites like ClevelandIntern.net for possible positions. Sites like these draw interns to them with their offer of job hunting and resume writing tips and for employers, the fees are much less than the national job boards. 

College campuses are another prime location for recruiting interns. In fact, several times a year most campuses will offer a recruiting fairs for interns to meet potential employers. Another option through the campuses is their Career Center. Most colleges and universities have them now to assist graduates with job placement. They would love to hear from you and will be happy to post your information. 

If your company doesn’t already have an internship program in place, it’s time to revisit that decision. Developing the program is easy enough to implement, especially with the tools you’ll have at your disposal. For example, college students today are infatuated with online videos. Post a video on your website telling potential interns why your company is the place to work. Offer short-term projects for students to bid on that can be completed throughout the year. Really want to get their attention? Follow the footsteps of the masterminds at Google and send pizza to the dorm room of your potential intern during finals week. Talk about “wow!” 

The struggle over getting the right intern has become more difficult than ever. To stay truly competitive, it’s important to offer an internship program that is top-notch and will get people talking. Make them want to be a part of your program as much as you want them to be a part of it.