Despite Overall Dip in Intern Hiring, More than 70% of Organizations Plan to Increase or Maintain Intern Hiring Levels

BETHLEHEM, PA—More than 70% of organizations expect to increase or maintain intern hiring this year, according to a new report from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).

Research for NACE’s 2025 Internship & Co-op Report found that nearly half of employers expect to maintain their intern hiring at last year’s levels, while nearly a quarter expect to bring in more interns in 2024-25 than they did in 2023-24. (See Figure 1.)
 
However, overall intern hiring is expected to fall 3.1%.

“This overall intern hiring drop is driven mainly by the largest companies across industries reporting plans to trim their intern roles,” explains Shawn VanDerziel, NACE’s president and chief executive officer. 

“According to respondents, their intern hiring plans are guided primarily by the needs of the organization and the state of the economy.” 

When employers are hiring interns, they are not necessarily just bringing on board rising seniors as had traditionally been the case. Research for recent Internship & Co-op Reports revealed that the number of interns eligible to convert to full-time employees—those who finished their junior year in the spring and who will be entering their senior year in the fall—has been decreasing. 

This suggests a shift in how internship programs are being constituted.

“Employers are including more students at the freshman and sophomore levels and perhaps with greater emphasis on having interns return year over year,” VanDerziel says. 

“This is an important factor in the hiring process because employers report preferring students with previous internship experience with their organization or within their industry when asked how they choose between internship candidates.” 

 

About the 2025 Internship & Co-op Report: NACE surveys its employer members yearly to gather benchmarks on internship and co-op programs. For the 2025 Internship & Co-op Report, NACE conducted the survey from October 16, 2024, to January 2, 2025. Overall, 247 organizations took part in the survey, including 208 NACE member organizations, representing 24.8% of eligible member organizations, and 39 nonmember companies. NACE’s 2025 Internship & Co-op Report is available on NACEWeb.
 
About the National Association of Colleges and Employers: Established in 1956, the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) is the only professional association in the United States that connects more than 13,000 college career services professionals, more than 3,800 early career talent acquisition professionals, and more than 400 business solution providers that serve this community.
 
NACE is the premier source of market research on career readiness, the employment of recent college graduates, and the college-to-career transition. NACE forecasts hiring and trends in the job market; tracks salaries, recruiting and hiring practices, and student attitudes and outcomes; and identifies best practices and benchmarks.
 
NACE offers its members unparalleled research, networking and professional development opportunities, guidance on standards and ethics, and advocacy on key issues. For more information, visit www.naceweb.org. NACE maintains a virtual press room for the media.