Interns – What’s In It For Me?

From the desk of our President, Pat Mastrocovi:

I’ve always believed that an internship is a great way for a company to show its commitment to opportunity and learning. Some companies offer internships for college credit, which can be a significant cost savings for the student. In years past, many companies offered unpaid internships, but those got a bad rap because too frequently it meant “do a lot of work … for no pay.” 

Moderne is fortunate to have two interns this summer; one who will receive credit and one who is here strictly for the experience and exposure. It’s been a two-way commitment, and I’d like to share some of the reasons we consider ourselves lucky to have bright young minds among us!

We started with a clear explanation of what their tasks would be; we gave direction and guidance and encouraged them to ask for clarification or feedback at any time. Our office is open concept so there’s lots of back-and-forth dialogue, both intended and sometimes because we think out loud, and they’ve both acclimated well to managing to be engaged when necessary and alternatively focused on tasks when that’s best.

The initial project consisted of helping us to ensure that our data related to our over 250,000 curated locations across the country is up to date post-pandemic. Not too much fun or exciting, but knowing the importance of the information as it’s a tool we are able to use to support our client’s goals for audience reach, they took the plunge and traveled the country virtually to check on our venues. Rather administrative in nature, but everyone knows that all jobs require some less than glamorous projects.

To keep sure that we provide not just a peek inside the world of marketing, but also a chance to make an impact on Moderne’s brand from a different perspective, we put together several other projects and deliverables. 

• Review and evaluate our website (one week to complete)
• Review our social media presence and share feedback (two weeks to complete)
• Write a blog relevant to our industry, topic of their choice (three weeks to complete)

Each of the above projects are for individual completion. Then, of course, we figured we should assign the sometimes-dreaded group project. 

• Complete an assessment of the past year’s media projects and assign impression numbers to each. Clients LOVE to know their ROI, and impression numbers for OOH media are valuable statistics for both campaign success as well as future sales tools. (one month to complete)

Summer’s not over yet, so we’re still enjoying the energy and enthusiasm our interns have brought, as well as the smart work on the projects they’ve completed so far. We feel good about the opportunity we’ve given them, and we hope they feel the same. We’re going to ask them if they’d like to share some insight into their experience as the season winds down, so stay tuned.

As I close, I realize that statistics always add to a topic, so if you’re still reading you deserve some! 

Since 2013, 60% of college students have completed an internship during their time in college according to smallbizgenius.net

Over 70% of employers end up offering their interns full-time jobs; almost 80% of those students accept the offer, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers.

The median starting salary for a college graduate with internship experience is $47,470 according to zippia.com.

Students who have done an internship are 85% more likely to be employed in the first years after college and earn 6% more than students who did not, according to Monster.com.