An internship can prove to be a vital first step on the career ladder. Interning can secure your future with a company and can be incredibly valuable for your resume.
In this guide, we will take you through everything you need to know about internships. From what an internship is to how much internships pay to some of the best (and most competitive) internships on the market.
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- What is an internship?
- Is an internship the same as work experience?
- Are internships worth it?
- Does everyone do an internship during college?
- When should I do an internship?
- What are the different types of internships?
- Are internships paid?
- What do you need to prepare before an internship application?
- When should you apply for an internship?
- Creating a resume for an internship
- Writing cover letters for an internship
- Interview questions you can expect to be asked when you apply for an internship
- Should I do an internship here in America or overseas?
- How to finance an internship
- Key internship statistics that you should know
- Top 10 internships and how to apply
What is an internship?
An internship is a period of employment within a company. Often you’ll fulfill a specific role during your internship and have set tasks to carry out that will be set out in a job description.
For college students, an internship is a great opportunity to gain meaningful experience that is relevant to their field of study.
For many employers, internships are a hiring opportunity, with many successful interns gaining long-term employment after they graduate. So choose your internship wisely!
Is an internship the same as work experience?
No, although there are some similarities.
Work experience placements tend to be ad-hoc, organized by the person doing the placement, and unpaid. They might last between a week and a month. Although you’ll probably do some work, you’ll also do a lot of job shadowing. Work experience is great when you want to get a taste of different careers.
Internships might last anywhere between a month and a year and they’re advertised by the employer. You’ll have a formal job contract with the employer and will have a range of tasks that you’ll be expected to complete. Although some shadowing will be involved, you’ll spend a lot of your time doing work and studying.
Are internships worth it?
If you’re looking to secure a job after you’ve finished studying then yes, an internship could be very worth your while. At some companies, they report conversion rates that exceed 70%, meaning a high proportion of their interns receive a full-time job offer. On average, 56% of US interns are offered and accept a job with the company they interned for while a further 14% are offered part-time jobs.
Having an internship also helps your job hunt, even if you don’t have an offer or don’t want an offer from the place you interned. By showcasing work experience during or after your studies, you’ll have a lot more to talk about in applications.
It’s worth remembering that an internship is also an opportunity for you to experience a role and a company, helping you to establish if this is something you’d like to do full-time. Just because a job is on the table at the end of your internship, doesn’t mean you’re obliged to take it.
Does everyone do an internship during college?
No, in fact in 2021 only 22% of students had an internship during the school year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. A lot of internships still rely on face-to-face work, which meant that students missed out on a lot of opportunities.
68% of interns in the United States have already completed their bachelor’s degree. Employers are increasingly looking for more qualified candidates so don’t be disheartened if you don’t find an internship during your bachelor’s. Many complete internships just before they plan to enter the workforce or during postgraduate studies.
When should I do an internship?
It’s never too early to get an internship.
If you can, start applying for summer internships as a freshman. Even if you don’t secure your dream internship the first time around, getting any internship can boost your chances of obtaining a more elite internship later in your college career.
Some internships can happen during the semester too. These might be part of your university studies, where you will be expected to do an industrial placement for a month, a semester, or an entire year of school. Normally, your college will have guidelines for these and will help you to secure a placement.
Other students complete an internship alongside their studies. This means you’ll need to be great at balancing things. These internships tend to be during the semester on a part-time basis and might go up in hours over the holidays.
Remember, it’s also never too late to do an internship. Some people complete internships after they’ve graduated and others intern once they’ve already had a few jobs. Internships can be great if you’re looking to change industries later in your career.
What are the different types of internships?
The world of work has thousands, if not millions, of types of jobs, and internships reflect this. Here are some of the different types of internships to look out for.
Paid internships – they’re particularly common in professional fields such as law, medicine, finance, and accounting.
This is an internship that is focused on gaining vital career-based experience.
Work research – mostly done by students in their final year of school where a student does research for a particular company. Sometimes the student can choose the topic of the research themselves, and other times a company will come up with a specific theme to explore.
Unpaid internships – are typical in the not-for-profit sector. You could be working for a think tank, a charity, or even for your local political office. Some states have a Minimum Wage Act which means that a program must meet the criteria to be properly classified as an unpaid internship.
Some of these internships will cover expenses such as food and transportation.
Partially-paid internships – students will be paid in the form of a stipend that is paid over a fixed period of time. With this stipend, there will be an expectation that a set number of tasks are completed.
Virtual internships – these are rising in popularity, especially since Covid-19. Here an intern works remotely so will be expected to have access to a good internet connection and a computer. These internships tend to offer increased flexibility in terms of the hours and days of work.
Informal internships – most companies advertise the internships they have available each year. However, some people find internships by making cold approaches. These organizations probably won’t have a formalized scheme in place so might not offer a set training plan or remuneration.
Are internships paid?
Due to some bad press in recent years, most employers offer payment to their interns, or at least cover their expenses. 39.2% of internships are unpaid, and 60.8% are paid.
The average hourly wage for an intern is between $15.67 and $19.51 for freshmen and seniors respectively, but some internships pay a lot more. Facebook (Meta) pays its tech interns $8,000 a month, that’s the equivalent of a $96,000 salary.
What are the highest-paying internships?
If you’re looking for an internship that is going to pay you exceptionally well, then tech tends to be very high paying.
It’s worth remembering though, that a lot of these internships go to people who are already highly qualified, many of whom already have an MA or a Ph.D., so if your internship isn’t paying as much, don’t be disheartened.
The top ten highest-paying internships are:
- Meta, $8,000 per month
- Microsoft, $7,100 per month
- ExxonMobil, $6,500 per month
- Salesforce, $6,450 per month
- Amazon, $6,400 per month
- Apple, $6,400 per month
- Bloomberg, $6,400 per month
- Yelp, $6,400 per month
- Yahoo, $6,100 per month
- VMWare, $6,100 per month
What do you need to prepare before an internship application?
First things first, do your research. Spend time exploring different types of internships, different employers, and what learning outcomes you want to (or need to) achieve.
Some internships, especially the elite ones, will expect you to provide them with certificates, transcripts, and test results. If you’re living and studying away from home, make sure you have a copy of your High School Diploma and your SAT results. If you’ve already completed some or all of college, make sure that you have all the relevant certifications to prove your degree progression.
If you’re an overseas student currently studying here in the US, make sure you have evidence of your visa, and that your visa allows internships. Your visa might restrict the types of internships you can do.
If you’re applying for a technical internship, you’ll also be expected to provide a portfolio of your work so far. For example, if you’re applying for a role in programming, you’ll need to provide code samples to potential companies from either studying or self-study.
You’ll also need to prepare your resume. Remember, it’s an incredibly competitive internship market so a good resume, a great cover letter, and brilliant test results will all help you to stand out from the crowd.
When should you apply for an internship?
As a general rule, you should start applying for Summer internships by the July of the previous year and at the very latest by October. So if you’d like to find an internship for Summer 2024, start your applications in Summer 2023.
This doesn’t mean that you won’t be able to find an internship for the same year. Some positions come up last minute, especially at startups. Smaller businesses won’t necessarily know their budget until nearer the time, but they probably won’t have a formal program either. ANy internship could be a great chance to get your first step on the career ladder.
Here are some internship deadlines you might want to know about:
- Dell Technologies – March, applications close when the positions are filled
- JPMorgan Chase – from late February (the year before the internship) to December
- PwC – for summer internships, the deadline is in late February of the year prior to the internship. For example, applications for summer 2025 are due in February 2024
- Meta – no set deadline but internships tend to be filled between September and October
Creating a resume for an internship
When it comes to creating a resume to apply for internships, it’s unlikely you’ll have a lot of work experience to add.
If that’s the case, it’s you’ll have other unique experiences to add so don’t be disheartened by a lack of work experience.
Here are some top tips for creating your resume:
Draw on your work experience – even if you’ve only ever had a job in the service industry or retail, you will have acquired transferable skills. Working as part of a team, leading a team, and working under pressure.
If you’ve volunteered, talk about it – volunteering work is great for your resume. It could be anything from working on a college paper to helping out at an animal rescue.
Into sport? Great – sports showcase so many skills including drive, discipline, and teamwork. All things that make you more employable.
Keep it short – if you haven’t got too much to say, don’t waffle. Keep your resume to an A4 page.
Showcase your academic achievements – at this stage in your career your academic achievements are key, so highlight any test scores and any qualifications that you have.
Use buzzwords – a lot of the big internship programs will use resume filtering technology, so take words and phrases directly from the job specification and add them to your resume.
Tailor it – every resume you submit for an internship should be different.
Writing cover letters for an internship
Most internships will be looking for a resume and cover letter. Some will also ask you to complete some tests and fill in an application form.
As this might be the first time that you are writing a cover letter, here’s what you need to know:
Your cover letter is a story, your resume is the evidence – think of your resume as the story that backs up your resume. Spend time detailing your experience and how you have achieved your successes so far.
Make it relevant – most internship applications will ask for you to address certain things so make sure you do it. Your cover letter should be unique for every application you do.
Find out who you need to address it to – this is a great touch. Contact the companies and ask who will be reading the letter. This can make a difference as it shows you’ve made the extra effort.
Proofread your applications – poor spelling and grammar can stop you from getting to the next stage. Ask friends and family to check your applications too.
Interview questions you can expect to be asked when you apply for an internship
Some of the top-tier internship programs will have multiple interview stages. You’ll be expected to complete tests, have interviews with key members of staff, and possibly prepare things like presentations, pitches, or demos.
Even for less prestigious internships, you will still be expected to do at least one round of interviews.
Here are just a few of the questions you would expect to be asked:
- Why did you apply for this internship?
- What do you hope to learn from this experience?
- Why do you think you’re the most qualified candidate for this internship?
- What do you know about our organization?
- Describe a time you have been part of a team.
- Describe a time you faced a difficult situation, and how you overcame it.
- Can you take us through your resume?
- Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
- Explain your process for working through stressful situations.
- Describe a time when you have overcome conflict.
When preparing for an interview, it’s important to do as much preparation as possible. Study the company, get to know its mission, vision, and values, and think about how you would answer the most common interview questions.
If you can, speak to previous candidates, and ask what interviews they were asked.
How to cold apply to companies without formal internship programs
Not all organizations advertise their internship programs, they may just offer internships on an ad-hoc basis when the right candidate happens to get in touch.
Not-for-profit organizations, political parties, and small to medium companies can all be approached about internships. As these are ad-hoc, they probably won’t be paid.
These internships can lead to a more lucrative internship later on, so don’t write them off.
When cold applying for an internship, here’s what you need to do:
- Find out who you should contact. This should be just one person in each organization. You could do some digging on LinkedIn to find the person and a relevant email or call the company to ask. The most successful cold applications go to a person, rather than to a generic inbox.
- Tailor your resume and cover letter. As there isn’t a formal application you should always send a cover letter and a resume. Make sure they’re tailored to the specific organization so that they’re more likely to be read.
- Follow up, then follow up again. It’s a good idea to follow up a few times. Leave a week or so between each email and remain polite. If you don’t get a reply from a firm after a few tries, move on.
Should I do an internship here in America or overseas?
You might not have considered it before, but an overseas internship could be a great opportunity to experience a new culture. A lot of overseas internships involve teaching English as a foreign language, especially in countries where English is not native. Even if you don’t want to go into teaching as a career you could improve your language skills (which is always great for your resume), experience a new culture, and combine working with the opportunity to travel.
This isn’t to say that there aren’t opportunities to work in other roles overseas. Many of the world’s financial hubs such as Singapore and London hire interns in banking and accounting, while large tech companies such as Google and Facebook have offices all over the world that accept interns.
It’s worth remembering that wages in the US for professional roles are particularly high, so an overseas internship might not pay you as much as you would earn here. However, living costs can be more reasonable. So make sure you do the math before applying overseas.
During the pandemic, 31.8% of interns doing postgraduate programs in China were impacted psychologically. Of course, elements such as isolation, travel restrictions, lockdowns, and the pandemic itself had a huge impact. But, if you’re prone to homesickness, an internship overseas probably isn’t the best idea.
Whether it’s better to do an internship here or overseas is very much unique to you. Think about what you want to achieve with this internship (work experience, a new experience, money, something for your resume, a job offer) and use that to inform where you apply.
How to finance an internship
Not all internships are paid and unless you’re one of the lucky few earning the big bucks at Meta, doing an internship can be costly. You may need to relocate for the summer, pay rent on a short-term let, and cover expenses such as food and transport.
If your internship is unpaid, definitely try and negotiate basic expenses to cover some of the key costs. If you can, negotiate your hours of work too so that you can potentially do paid part-time work alongside your internship.
To fund your internship you could:
- Apply for funding from your school. Often colleges have a fund to support students, especially if you’re from an underrepresented community. Your career advisor will be the best person to speak to. Get in early though, the sooner you apply for funding the better.
- Apply for a grant or charitable donation. Some charities have been set up to support people in to work. This could be to support women in science subjects or to help first-generation students secure internships at top firms. Sometimes you’ll be able to find these funds online, other times they’ll be more localized, in which case you’ll find details of these schemes in your local library.
- Save. If you can work the summer prior to your internship, or work during the school year, save this money to fund an internship. It’s a good idea to get some savings banked as soon as possible.
- Work alongside your internship. If you’re used to working at college all day, then doing a few shifts at a part-time job then you could intern and work. Try and make sure you’re only doing part-time work that you have time to do. You don’t want to be too tired to make the most of your internship.
Key internship statistics that you should know
- 56% of US interns are offered and accept a job with the company they interned for while a further 14% are offered part-time jobs.
- 21.5% of college students do an internship.
- The average internship lasts for 18.3 weeks, or 128.1 days, or 1,038 working hours.
- 31% of interns do multiple internships before entering full-time work. Women are three times more likely to do multiple internships than men.
- 68% of interns in the United States have already completed their bachelor’s degree.
- 39.2% of internships are unpaid, and 60.8% are paid.
- The average hourly wage for an intern is between $15.67 and $19.51 for freshmen and seniors respectively, but some internships pay a lot more. Facebook (Meta) pays its tech interns $8,000 a month, that’s the equivalent of a $96,000 salary.
- The highest average intern hourly wage is in Chicago at $17.74, followed by Los Angeles at $17.26, and Boston at $17.14.
- Paid internships are 32% more likely to lead to a full-time job offer than an unpaid internship.
- The starting salary for those who completed a paid internship is $15,000 more than the median starting salary for those who did not do an internship (paid or unpaid).
- 67.15% of interns are white.
- Financial services is the most popular industry for internships. 19% of interns work in financial services.
Top 10 internships and how to apply
Feeling ready to apply for an internship? We’ve listed some of our favorites.
Meta
Roles: AI, research, data science, computer development
Salary: $8,000 per month for tech roles
Locations: New York City (New York State), San Francisco (California) Sunnyvale (California), Bellevue (Washington)
When to apply: no set deadline but internships tend to be filled between September and October
Frequently considered one of the best internships in the world, and definitely, one of the best paid, Meta interns are paired with a 1:1 mentor to support them throughout their program.
You’ll also receive housing assistance for the duration of your on-site internship so you won’t have to pay for housing or expenses.
PwC
Roles: Professional services
Salary: $29.53 average hourly rate.
Locations: Nationwide. Across 79 offices.
When to apply: for summer internships, the deadline is in late February of the year prior to the internship. For example, applications for summer 2025 are due in February 2024.
PwC is a professional services firm that operates globally. Interns can expect a valuable learning experience, with lots of opportunities to get stuck in.
The Start Program is designed for students from ethnic minorities that are underrepresented in the firm.
NASA
Roles: Research, engineering
Salary: $33 average hourly rate.
Locations: Hampton VA, Washington DC
When to apply: For the summer internship, the deadline is March of the previous year.
Ever fancied going to space? NASA offers internships in a variety of departments to high school through to graduate level students.
Their goal is to increase the capability, diversity, and size of the nation’s future STEM workforce.
Pathways interns have a direct pipeline into full-time employment after they graduate.
Roles: Engineering, technology, business
Salary: $11,163 per month for Ph.D. interns in Summer 2022.
Locations: New York City NY, Sunnyvale CA, Mountain View CA
When to apply: Google’s SWE internships usually open in September orOctober of the year before. Recently, Google has set an application deadline within 2-3 weeks of the application opening.
There is a huge range of internship programs at Google, so students from all disciplines can thrive.
The internships are fast-paced and exciting and you’ll be assigned a mentor, be invited to special intern events, and get to learn a lot.
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Roles: Analytics, science, technology
Salary: $50,000 pro rata
Locations: Washington DC
When to apply: At least 6-12 months before your desired start date
Interning at the CIA gives you the opportunity to work on real-world intelligence issues.
There’s the opportunity through their scholarship program to get financial assistance towards your college tuition. You will have to do 1 or 2 90-day internships at the CIA and 1 90-day tour at the CIA prior to graduation and work there for a further 1.5 years once you graduate.
Goldman Sachs
Roles: Analytics and associates
Salary: $8,000 per month
Locations: New York City NY, Dallas TX, and national
When to apply: Programs open in March
The Analyst program is designed for undergraduate students, while the Associate program is designed for students pursuing advanced degrees such as MBAs and PhDs.
In both programs, you will receive division-specific training and join the team on real, meaningful projects.
The Home Depot
Roles: Sales, marketing, HR, legal
Salary: $20-30 per hour.
Locations: Atlanta GA and national
When to apply: Applications are live in September and October for the following summer
Home Depot offers paid 11-week internships in a variety of areas from marketing to supply chain.
It’s a highly rated internship for intern satisfaction with many remarking on the fantastic networking opportunities that come from such a huge company.
Nickelodeon
Roles: Animation, game development, marketing
Salary: $14 an hour
Locations: Burbank CA
When to apply: The deadline to apply for Summer programs is February of the same year
At Nickelodeon, they’re not internships but NICKternships. Over 10 weeks, you’ll get a front-row seat to the creative process of some of your favorite Nick shows while also getting a mentor and plenty of hands-on experience.
You’ll get the opportunity to be creative and learn from some of the very best.
Applications for summer programs are open for just a couple of weeks in January each year.
KPMG
Roles: Audit, tax accountancy, financial management
Salary: $24 an hour
Locations: National
When to apply: Applications close the year prior to the internship. Usually, internships close in late February for the summer of the following year.
Each intern will gain professional training and hands-on experience at KPMG.
Those who accept an internship offer from KPMG can apply to participate in its Global Internship Program (GIP). The program begins with an internship in the US followed by four weeks overseas undertaking further professional training. All travel and expenses are covered for GIP participants.
Tesla
Roles: Automotive engineering, computer engineering, robotics
Salary: $27 an hour
Locations: Palo Alto CA
When to apply: Varies. Most internships are open for 4 months, but many close early
Tesla is looking for interns with a passion for what they do. You’ll be expected to work hard, produce exceptional outputs, and be part of the team from day one.
You’ll be taking ownership of projects so you’ll need to be proactive and ready to learn.
Not seeing something on this list that’s right for you? At any one time, we have 100s of 1000s of internships available to apply to here.