Join/Renew
When it comes to offering experiences that interns find beneficial, what are employers doing well and what can they do better?
According to respondents to NACE’s 2025 Student Survey, interns valued their colleagues who were friendly and helpful and made the internship a good experience. (See Figure 1.)
The majority also felt their skills were valued and appreciated, and that they were assigned meaningful work during their internship.
Still, although nearly 9 in 10 respondents reported liking the organization they interned for, more than 80% feeling committed to the organization they interned for because it treated them well, and more than three-quarters saying the internship helped them determine that it was a field they were interested in for a career, only 55% indicated they wanted to stay at the organization upon completion of their internship.
Where are there areas for employers to improve the intern experience? Less than two-thirds of interns felt they were paid fairly and just 81% had a mentor, which is a key anchor point to and sounding board for an organization.
NACE’s 2025 Student Survey, sponsored by Indeed, was conducted April 1 through May 30, 2025; 13,684 college students, including 1,479 Class of 2025 graduating seniors at the bachelor’s degree level, took part. Participants can access the report and dashboard through MyNACE. The report and dashboard are also available in the NACE Store.
