The True Value of Interns
Paid Interns/Co-Ops see greater offer rates and salary offers than their unpaid classmates, according to a 2016 Student Survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers.
That’s good news for the Michigan college and university students coming of age in one of America’s most uncertain economic eras. It is even better news when you factor in the thousands of Michigan start-up and entrepreneurial ventures that could hire them and benefit from their fresh minds and recent education.
Centuries ago, anyone wishing to learn a craft was apprenticed to a master, be it medicine or stone masonry. Their pay was room and board, or if in coin, a pittance compared to the master’s fees. Learning from the master is still an incentive for new graduates to seek internships, but at the same time, hiring — and paying — an intern is becoming an incentive for start-ups, entrepreneurial companies, and the educational facilities that partner with them.
Entrepreneurs tell me they think they have to invest too much time and energy training an intern.
My experience working with students tells me the opposite: today’s students, be they in business, engineering, or research, are go-getters that don’t need significant training. For the time and energy and funds you invest, the results are usually high-impact, whether it is designing a company brochure or doing competitive research.
Ultimately, it’s a Win-Win-Win-Win (WIN4) proposition:
WIN 1: The Intern gains real life experience and exposure to entrepreneurship. Their pay, whether through payroll, a grant, or a loan, helps them becomes invested in making the business grow.
WIN 2: The Entrepreneur gains fresh ideas, new tools and resources, and learns to reach and understand a different market (60% of startup owners are age 45 or above. Bringing in a recent graduate as an intern clearly changes the vantage point).
WIN 3: The Schools/Teachers that encourage the students help make it happen. Creating and nurturing internship programs gives students the opportunity to quickly become a part of the economy and job market.
WIN 4: Society wins because internships keep students in the local community. Young talent continues to leave the State of Michigan. The most recent U.S. Census shows an increasing loss in the number of people aged 22–34 with a bachelor’s degree or higher, according to a 2016 article in Crain’s Detroit Business.
The Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth projects an annual demand for 30,000 college educated adults in the State. A few hundred dollars a month can change their lives, change the business, and make a difference for the State of Michigan.
BEFORE YOU GO:
We see our blogs as opportunities for dialogue. Please share your thoughts as comments.
- What type of interns have you hired, skill-wise?
- What resources have you utilized to find interns?
- What advice do you give Entrepreneurs about interns?
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Faris Alami is Founder and CEO of International Strategic Management, Inc. (ISM). He works internationally, presenting Exploring Entrepreneurship Workshops and other entrepreneurial ecosystem — related ventures.
