Intern Program Options

Internship Duration & Seasons
Typical Seasons

Internship Duration & Seasons

When mapping their educational paths, many students wonder: What is the duration of an internship? Like most issues in the internship arena, there is more than one answer.

That being said, about 10 weeks to three months—or the duration of one semester or quarter—is a common internship length. However, the answer to "How long is an internship?" can also be dictated by the duration of a school break; for instance, summer internships and winter internships are common, and take place over the course of a summer or winter vacation.

Keep in mind that you can hire interns at any time of year. Typical seasons set by the school year include summer, fall, winter, spring, but you can hire for longer time periods.

When you post your internship on ICI, specify the start date of the internship (you can choose a date and make it flexible or not). In your internship description specify the dates or length of the internship if you need something outside the typical seasons.

Typical Seasons

  • Fall internships typically start in September
  • Winter internships typically start in November or December
  • Spring internships typically start in January or February
  • Summer internships typically start in May or June

Furthermore, while an internship is traditionally a one-time experience, it is not completely uncommon for a student to take part in more than one internship at the same company. In this case, the internships may be during back-to-back semesters or even over the course of consecutive summers. It is also possible that a student might complete an internship only to be rehired during a later semester or quarter.

The bottom line is that the length of an internship can really be anything that is agreeable to both the student and the setting.

Types of Internships
What Are the Different Types of Internships?

Types of Internships

What Are the Different Types of Internships?

When referring to types of internships, most can be categorized according to four basic dimensions:

  1. Time of year. Internships tend to run the duration of an academic semester or quarter (although they can run longer), or over a summer or winter break. Therefore, based on the time of year, the basic types of internships are semester internships, quarterly internships, summer internships, fall internships, spring internships, and holiday or winter internships (i.e. over a winter break).

  2. Industry. Internship programs are also classified by industry; this usually corresponds with the interns' majors. While there are obviously hundreds of possibilities, some of the most common include marketing internships, advertising internships, finance internships, entertainment industry internships, legal internships, technology internships, fashion internships, PR internships, and publishing internships.

  3. Paid versus unpaid internships. There are legal ramifications—and blurred lines—regarding whether it is permissible to employ interns without pay (most depend on meeting the legal definition of "intern"). For now, however, it's sufficient to say that paid internships and unpaid internships are another method of classification.

  4. Credit versus no-credit internships. For-credit internships and not-for-credit internships is another type of categorization, as it's a common misconception that internships are always in exchange for college or university credit.

    In actuality, internships can be part of academic coursework; however, they can also be part of an individual's extracurricular plan to gain experience. When an internship is performed in exchange for college credit, the assigning of credit is strictly between the student and his or her school.

  5. Location. Since internship programs are commonly posted online (and garner submissions from around the globe), internships are also referred to by the city in which they are located. Examples of location-classified internships are New York internships, Los Angeles internships, Washington DC internships, Chicago internships, and San Francisco internships, among many others. (Another option is "virtual" or offsite internships, learn more about those here.)

    While there are various types of internships, all share one common denominator: The student strives to meet certain learning objectives. Such objectives are often formally reflected upon and evaluated by both the student and the internship supervisor.

Virtual & Year-Round Internships
Virtual and Year-Round Internships Offer More Options

Virtual and Year-Round Internships Offer More Options

Have you considered hiring an intern or starting an internship program at your company? The internship experience is a win-win situation. Positive for the intern who gains work experience in an industry of interest, networks with employees and managers who could later assist with career choices, and starts a decision-making process regarding possible lifelong career options. Positive for the company that has the added assistance of young employees, meets and vets possible full-time hires, and contributes to the education of students who will enter a particular industry better prepared due to experience gained at your company. These are just a few of the benefits of running an internship program.

As you start deliberating the positive aspects of an internship program, large questions regarding logistics will surface, and if not addressed, run the risk of derailing the process. Questions like: Do we have the space for an intern? Can we find interns year round so we can keep our continuity? How do we find the best interns for our company when it’s hard to find students in our area?

There are many different types of internships, so before you shut down the deliberations, check out these two internship options.

Virtual interns: Virtual interns are those who work remotely—at school, home, library and so on—rather than in your office. There are many reasons for choosing this option.

Benefits

  • Finding the right intern for your company is essential. A virtual situation allows you to find interns outside of your geographic location. Maybe the schools in your area don’t offer classes or majors that relate directly to your needs, or an excellent intern already working for you needs to relocate out of the area. Broaden your search for interns across the country or retain the services of a relocating intern by establishing a virtual internship that allows students to gain experience without having to work from your location.
  • You can post your virtual internships on ICI and find students that way—free of charge.
  • Office space and resources are not an issue.
  • Students with laptops are mobile and can work flexible hours. They can work from dorm rooms, the library, a classroom, and set their own schedule in consultation with their office supervisor. Student life is very different than the office world and a virtual situation will allow you, the company, to harness the talent of a young intern without forcing that intern to compromise school and life to mesh with a 9 to 5 schedule.
  • Virtual interns are a natural complement to an organization that is distributed, or works from home offices or a variety of locations.

 How to manage virtual interns

  • You still need an intern manager who will train interns, assign tasks and check in to see progress daily and weekly.
  • Many employers find timesheets a helpful tool to keep track of projects and time committed to each.
  • Schedule a weekly phone call to review work, discuss next projects and share any feedback with interns.
  • Stay in regular contact and be sure to set aside time for training your intern.
  • Some organizations have interns come into the office once or twice a month and then work remotely for regular daily tasks.

 

Year-round interns:  Over are the days of summer-only internships. As students become more mobile and engaged with exploring career options earlier, the boundaries of the summer internship have broken down. You can find an intern and continue working with them across semesters or find new interns each season.

 How many hours a week can interns work during their school year?

  • It’s not unusual for internships during the school year to be 5 to 10 hours a week while the students attend classes or hold part-time jobs.
  • You can talk to your potential interns about the number of hours they can work each week. Students will vary on the hours they can provide depending on their school and other commitments.
  • Keep in mind that these can be on-site interns or work remotely (virtually).

 Benefits

  • The benefit of using interns year-round is without the start and stop of students that pop in only during the summer your company may be able to retain one particular intern across more than one season and extend the experience for both parties.  
  • Interns are often a source of potential new hires; continuing a relationship with interns that fit well with your organization over more than one semester/period will allow you to further consider and train them.
  • Using interns in a year-round capacity can also mean that various departments can have interns. Perhaps it is typical for you to hire interns in marketing. Why not consider interns for accounting or HR? Or, you can consider having interns rotate through various departments over the course of the year. They benefit from learning more about your work and industry and you get to aid a variety of departments.

Virtual internships and year-round internships are two options that will allow your company to think outside the internship box. Consider the extended projects an intern could complete in either format, the saved resources of eliminating non-stop intern hiring, or computer/office space considerations. It may take a different type of organization level, a review of the intern/supervisor relationship, and a reformat of the traditional internship, but it will be worth it when your company is able to hire and retain the best intern for the program regardless of location and scheduling.

The 8-Hour Internship
Advantages of the "8 Hour Internship"

Advantages of the "8 Hour Internship"

As discussed in Part I of “Working with Busy School-Year Interns,” the virtual internship is one program that helps employers take advantage of intern talent while classes are in session.

However, it’s not your only option.

Introducing the 8-Hour Internship

An innovative trend in internships, the 8-hour internship refers to a format where interns work only eight hours a week—either on or offsite.

This novel new approach is built on the principle that students can still get valuable work experience—and employers, useful support—by committing a minimal number of hours weekly. In fact, in terms of the 8-hour internship, the streamlined time commitment is not seen as an obstacle to overcome, but rather as an intrinsic advantage.

Employers: 5 Advantages of the 8-Hour Internship

Like virtual internships, hiring interns within this 8-hour architecture boasts a number of benefits, both intern and employer based. For instance, student advantages include an ability to try on various vocations before committing and a solution to the school-versus-work time struggle.

Meanwhile, employer benefits are based on helping businesses profit from student workers during the active academic calendar and on enabling small businesses to build an internship steadily and sequentially:

1. Higher-energy interns. Students who are not overwhelmed with a full load of classes and a fulltime job are simply going to be more productive.

As an employer, utilizing an alert, inspired intern for a few hours a week may likely net the same output as trying to wring energy and accomplishment out of an exhausted, four- or five-day-a-week worker.

2. Larger applicant pool. As with virtual internships, offering an 8-hour opportunity opens up your pool of potential interns by accommodating students who have to work a second job.

It’s also an option for interns who may not live nearby; because even if your program is onsite, making a long commute once or twice a week is much more doable than driving a long distance daily. Additionally, since a student is working only approximately eight hours a week, they can come in during off-hours to avoid traditional commuter traffic.

3. Test drive for fulltime interns. As we’ve discussed, one of the major internship advantages is the ability to “test drive” future employees; as such, internship programs give companies a pipeline of prescreened, trained, and proven fulltime staff members.

But selecting the right intern is important in and of itself… especially for fulltime, paid positions. Therefore, if the internship is a selection tool for finding permanent employees, the 8-hour internship might be seen as a vehicle for finding fulltime interns.

For example, you might hire an intern in an 8-hour-a-week capacity. If the intern is a fit, you could then offer an increased number of hours—possibly with additional pay and augmented responsibility (or with pay, period, if the previous position was unpaid).

This reduces your risk of spending an entire summer or semester with a fulltime intern who isn’t the asset you had imagined.

4. Resource reduction. First there’s the obvious: It’s less expensive to pay an intern for eight hours a week than for 40. Therefore, if you’re a small business just starting an internship program, the 8-hour option is a perfect way to get your feet wet and assess your workload.

In terms of space and equipment, an 8-hour internship means you need not allocate a workspace and computer for fulltime use. 8-hour interns can easily timeshare cubicles and computers on alternating days with other interns or part-time workers.

This strategy allows you to grow your business slowly, steadily, and most importantly, safely: You’ll expand your office space only when you truly have the manpower to necessitate a move.

5. Proof for new programs. If getting financial approval to hire interns is an issue, the 8-hour internship is particularly advantageous.

Implementing this type of internship requires very minimal resources. This lets you start up in stages, proving program ROI incrementally to gain greater buy-in (and, consequently, a bigger budget).

Employer takeaway: Like the virtual internship, the 8-hour internship is one of today’s most buzzed-about intern hiring trends. Requiring only eight hours a week, onsite or remotely, students are able to gain valuable experience—as well as insight into their own proficiencies and preferences—while satisfying school-year requirements. For employers, utilizing student talent during the busy school year and implementing an internship program without risking major resources contribute to the program’s growing popularity.