Does your company offer an internship programme? Have you considered the benefits of such a programme? I have heard several people say that that an internship programme is beneficial for the intern only, while for the company the time invested in the intern is wasted as the intern returns to college just as they become useful. While it is true that there are several benefits for the intern; paid summer job, gaining on job experience and a perspective on a potential future profession they may wish to follow, your company can benefit too.

Let us share with you our experience

As a company,  we are new to the idea of internships. While in the past we took on summer students their role has been of an office admin type. However, since 2016 we have actively sought interns who are doing a business or accounting degree and who are looking to commence a career in accountancy following college. In our first year, we took on one intern as we wanted to see how the whole programme would work out. While this approach means more time and effort is spent when recruiting the intern, we felt the benefits far outweighed the costs. As a consulting firm, we tend to have many employees on study leave/annual leave over the summer period and the presence of the intern allowed us to alleviate some of the work flow issues that can arise around this time. Another benefit for us was that we could use the internship programme as a recruitment tool for future employees. It allowed us to assess the intern in a work environment rather than in an interview setting. This enabled us to gain a much more rounded judgement on the person and how they would fit into the team. Our first venture into the world of internship was so successful that this summer we took on two interns. And we never looked back. So, we would highly recommend that your company considers such a programme. As our experience shows it can be beneficial for both the intern and the company.

What questions do you have?

We are happy to help. Please post your comment below or call Will Townsend (ACA, BBS (ACC), CMC), Partner at Cooney Carey, on 01 677 9000. Alternatively, send him an email: wtowsend@cooneycarey.ie

To keep in touch, connect with our friendly team on LinkedIn.

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