Des Moines Register
03/15/06
Students turn selective . . . and swamp employers
Battle for interns, internships intensifies
BONNIE HARRIS
REGISTER BUSINESS WRITER
For most college students, gladly grabbing the first internship offer that rolls
around is like listening to portable CD players: It doesn't really happen anymore.
For the first time since 2000, students are weighing multiple offers from
employers, who in turn must make internship programs more attractive than ever
if they want to snag top candidates.
That means giving students more responsibilities - including face-time with top
exec- utives and clients - rather than assuming interns are simply grateful to see
how an office works.
"Students expect a lot more from internship programs now," said Denise Ross
Haynes, director of counseling and career services at Simpson College in
Indianola. "They don't want to just file paperwork and answer phones, and they
don't want to work for free. They're still happy to get the work experience, but
they want it to be meaningful."
Supply and demand are in play. Board of Regents reports show enrollment at
Iowa uni- versities is down for the third consecutive year. The situation could get
worse as the number of working-age Iowans shrinks as baby boomers retire
during the next decade.
In such a competitive hiring market, employers realize more than ever the
importance of internships, said Jan Burch, who owns a human resources
consulting firm in West Des Moines.
At a Des Moines job fair in January, a third of the 90 or so employers were
looking for interns, she said.
"That is a fairly significant number, much higher than what we've experienced in
previous years," Burch said.
Students have become more selective as internship programs have grown
sophisticated. For example, IBM's internship program expects students to
develop a product, such as software to help energy companies avoid blackouts.
As a result, employers may not get their No. 1 choice of interns anymore, said
Steven Rothberg, president of CollegeRecruiter.com, a career site for students
and recent graduates. That stands in contrast to the internship market six or
seven years ago, he said.
"They'll still get many well-qualified candidates, sure," Rothberg said. "They'll just
find it harder to hire the best."
Ashley Ayers, 22, turned down two internship offers to work at Wells Fargo
Financial last year. The Iowa State University business management major
said she was careful about where she applied, hoping to gain an edge in her field
of study rather than doing "secretarial work."
As it turned out, Ayers was tapped by Wells Fargo to work on major marketing
projects, staff development and even recruitment. She helped interview job
candidates and screen applicants in the human resources department.
"It was much more challenging than I thought it would be," said Ayers, who was
offered a job at Wells Fargo one week before graduating last summer and now
works full time as a college recruitment coordinator for the home and consumer
finance group. "I had high expectations of them, but I was glad that they
expected a lot from me, too."
While Wells Fargo doesn't have a formal internship program, managers may opt
to hire college students in various departments and advertise those positions on
the company's Web site. Ayers, for example, worked for recruitment vice
president Loran Storts, who said he may receive 30 applications for the one
internship he keeps on his staff.
"We really look for leadership qualities," Storts said. "So we may get a great
response, but we also like to move quickly enough to hire those students who
stand out the most in that area, whether it's student government, athletics, drama
or other internships."
Renee Hardman, senior vice president of human resources at Banker's Trust, is
already wading through more than 100 applications for this year's 10 summer
internships, and she expects many more to arrive before final offers are made.
Hardman said the company expects its interns to handle a range of
responsibilities that include group community service projects, a PowerPoint
presentation of their experience and intense customer service.
By summer's end, Hardman said, all 10 interns will meet with the bank president
and two members of the board of directors for a chance to ask them "whatever
they want."
"This is a real job, with real-life duties," Hardman said. "We give them a formal
evaluation at the end of the summer, and they can earn bonuses for their
performance."
The interns are paid $10.50 per hour and receive any earned bonus checks their
first week back at school.
Stephanie Schenfeld, 22, landed her first internship with Bankers Trust the
summer after her sophomore year at Simpson College. She was hired back the
following summer, and now works part time in the consumer lending department
while she finishes her senior year.
"I know of other students who've had just really boring experiences as an intern,
and they're amazed at what I get to do here," said Schenfeld, an avid golfer who
has participated in several tournaments with some of the bank's major customers
and executives.
"They've trusted me enough to represent the bank, and that's a super big
responsibility, a real honor. It's just been phenomenal."
Schenfeld, like most interns, hopes her work relationship with Bankers Trust will
extend into a full-time future. At least 35 percent of all internships do, according
to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, and the number is
growing fast.
"Really, it's all about full-time employment now," said CollegeRecruiter.com's
Rothberg. "In this kind of market, if employers don't end up turning the temporary
relationship into a permanent one, they lose."