How can I find a paid internship during a pandemic?

There’s plenty of evidence to demonstrate that students who graduate with career-related experience such as an internship are more likely to be employed upon graduation, be employed in their chosen career field, and be well paid. But during this COVID-19 pandemic, there’s a big difference between knowing that you should successfully complete at least one internship prior to graduation and being able to find one.

First, when people tell you that job hunting is a numbers game, believe them. But don’t believe that the more jobs you apply to, the more likely it is that you will be hired. Contrary to convention wisdom, research demonstrates that the ideal number of jobs to apply to is five. Why? Because it forces you to really research that employer so you’ll understand what they do, who their vendors are, who their customers are, and to network with employees who can help you get hired.

Second, articulate to potential employers not just what classes you’ve taken and projects you’ve completed, but how those demonstrate your ability to do the job. Few employers who hire college students for internships hire from just one school and even fewer hire just students in one major at one school. They’re just not going to know your school, major, classes, or projects as well as you, and yet those are critical factors in your favor if you’re able to do a good job of communicating to the employer that your academic experiences demonstrate that you’re going to succeed in their environment.

Third, embrace assessments. More and more employers are requiring candidates to complete assessments as part of the interviewing process. Why? Because employers aren’t hiring you to sit in a classroom or take tests. Your classroom knowledge should help you be productive, but the better you can demonstrate your ability to translate knowledge into work the better. Assessments are designed to do exactly that.

Fourth, be flexible. Consider moving to a geographic area where there is more of a shortage of the kind of talent you have or working in an industry starved for people with your skills. For example, we hear all the time from accounting students that they’re struggling to find internships with accounting firms. Yet almost every employer with more than a couple of dozen employees has on staff at least one person who does accounting work. Why not intern with a consumer goods company that needs help in their accounts payable department?

Fifth, never, ever disregard the resources offered by your college career service office. Your career service office likely offers individualized career assistance by trained career counselors. This helps includes but goes well beyond resume reviews and critiques, interview coaching, networking, and more. All college students should use their career service office as part of their search for internship and entry-level jobs.