Internship Programs: What Candidates Find Appealing
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Training and networking opportunities are very important as well as exposure to real high-impact assignments. A company's reputation is also a big lure.

Goldman Sachs, McKinsey and Microsoft are some of the most sought-after employers by interns. Below are some quotes from interns at these and other companies, commenting on why they found their experiences so appealing.

Deutsche Bank
"Deutsche Bank evidently places great emphasis on recruiting the top individuals for its internship program. Their extensive interviewing process takes place over a series of interviews and allows both the company and candidate to make sure they are a good
fit for each other."

"They recruit many interns from many different backgrounds and universities. I also learned that they offer financial and communications training classes, and that they give their interns the chance to interact and meet with some of the company's top
executives."

"Focus on providing projects that give interns the opportunity to get broad exposure to the industry and add value during the internship. Also, heavy focus on educating the interns during the program through both work experience and industry specific classroom education."

"Generalist program with two rotations. Other banks either don't rotate (you are hired for a specific function) or you rotate every week. I find it hard to imagine that a first year MBA student knows enough to determine that FX vs. high yield is a better option for their careers."

"A very organized internship, including weekly social events to get to know other interns, weekly classes on subjects relevant to the job, official mentors who actually make an effort to stay in touch with your progress, streamlined recruiting process (with same-day decisions), clear expectation settings, and great people to work with."

General Mills
"Real, high impact assignments; exposure to senior leadership; planned social and networking activities for interns."

"Good name. Solid projects. Learn a lot. Structured. Intern events."

"Lots of things - access to sr mgmt, plentiful feedback, off sites, real life on the job experience, good salary, subsidized housing, good yield rate on offers."

"First of all, General Mills is known for its great working culture and employees. Interns are assigned projects that not only cater to the company's interests, but also to the intern's interest. Furthermore, General Mills offers opportunities in locations all over
the U.S."

"Structure, meaningful projects, and full-time offer rates."

Goldman Sachs
"The fact that Goldman is the most prestigious bank on Wall Street makes the internship so appealing."

"The Prestige. The reputation. The people. Teamwork. Meritocracy."

"According to the recruiter I talked to it was rotational for the summer so you get exposed to a number of different groups."

"Very prestigious; interns learn a lot and are given high amounts of responsibility; pays well; great location (New York City)."

"Goldman Sachs sets the standard for the summer analyst and associates programs. An internship here opens a lot of doors within the firm and elsewhere."

Mckinsey
"Top-notch management consulting experience, board-level exposure, opportunity for full-time employment."

"Brand name - MBA's want to minimize risk so they seek brand recognition as a sign of approval."

"Very well structured and set-up in advance so when interns arrive they immediately have the summer expectations clearly laid out and the resources needed to achieve their goals."

"Not so much their program as the company's general reputation as a top consulting firm."

"Having McKinsey on your resume even for three short months attracts the attention of most MBA recruiters."

Microsoft
"Very competitive salaries, excellent benefits, huge exposure, great opportunity."
"They treat their interns very well (in terms of housing accommodations and expenses). Their program is solidly structured, well developed, and well organized."

"Interns are supposedly given real responsibility for product features and their housing in Redmond is paid for."

"Excellent pay, Very good work environment, Value Addition due to the internship to your resume and interesting projects."

"Competitive program, hands-on experience on-site, working in an entry-level position as an undergraduate, high pay."

Procter and Gamble
"The company goes above and beyond in providing interns with meaningful internship experiences. The projects model typical, entry-level work assignments. Further, the interns receive a wealth of mentoring and support. The interns are also provided a number of opportunities to learn about the various functional areas of the company from a number of high-ranking Procter & Gamble professionals. The interns are also exposed to a number of social events to interact with Procter & Gamble employees."

"The assigned project is well planned with clear objectives, methods of achieving the objectives. A diverse group of interns, from different school, ethic group, major. A large number of interns, all living in the same dorm/place. Good mentor/mentee program. Good housing/relocation arrangement. Good pay and reimbursement."

"They give all of their interns substantive work that is comparable to what they would be doing as full-time hires. The pay and benefits are phenomenal. People at the company are good at what they do and are willing to help guide the interns (good support system set up). They really help the interns get to know the city by providing them with a lot of events outside of work (dinner at restaurants, tickets to amusement parks, happy hours, theatre shows, etc.)."

"The company's overall reputation and breadth of consumer products allows for learning about the different sectors within such a huge company. Good also for resume building as the company is a competitor to many others in the same industries.

"They are a large company that takes the time to give interns responsibility that all engineering employees have. This is the most ideal situation; you have a real taste of what work is truly like."

Sun Microsystems
"Sun internships not only provide the opportunity to get some practical experience, they also have various programs through which interns can learn more about the sun products, and labs.etc."

"You get hands on working with latest technologies, provides great working environment and definitely you get chance to work with the industry leaders here."

"A company that puts time and effort into its internship program shows a strong interest in future employees, especially since many companies hire candidates from their pool of interns."

"The company itself is so large and deals with so many aspects of computer engineering that no matter what area you internship is in, you can gain knowledge in any field that you want to. Also, there is the possibility of moving into another internship (in another area) once yours is over, if you decide you don't like what you're currently doing."

"Sun has a structured program specifically with the interns in mind. There are intern activities throughout the internship, many extras that come with the job like the gym access, concierge service, on-site food area, and executive speakers series."

Unilever
"It's organized, challenging, allows you to interact with all levels of management, and puts your educational knowledge to work!"

"High offer yield; Meaningful, relevant summer projects; Diversity, dynamics, exposure, compensation, ability to advance."

"Well-organized, real projects with responsibility, opportunity to learn about all aspects of the company, access to top management, good recruiting process, offers to interns."

"Structured program that enable students to work on value-added projects. - Exposure to senior management - interaction with entire intern class."

SOURCE: Data extracted from WetFeet's Internship Programs Report 2004.

Workforce Management

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