Trends & Predictions

Employers Made Changes to 2020 Summer Internships Due to COVID-19

October 19, 2020 | By NACE Staff

TRENDS & PREDICTIONS
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Spotlight for Career Services Professionals

Among organizations that planned to maintain their summer 2020 internship program in April, more than half indicated that they were moving their programs to a virtual space in response to the coronavirus pandemic, according to NACE Report: COVID-19 Quick Poll Series.

The largest organizations were most likely to make this change. By the end of April, nearly three-quarters of respondents with more than 20,000 employees expected to move their summer 2020 internship programs to virtual. (See Figure 1.)

More than 60% of employers with 5,001 to 20,000 employers also transitioned their internship programs to virtual; interestingly, the same was true for employers with 500 or fewer employees.

Meanwhile, small to medium companies were more likely to reduce the length of the internship by delaying start date, which was the second most popular adaptation employers made to their summer 2020 internship programs.

NACE conducted a series of monthly coronavirus quick polls—from March through June 2020—to assess the impact on and response from colleges and employers in our field. The four quick polls addressed a variety of topics, including office closures, travel restrictions, internships, plans for fall recruiting, on-campus activities, changes in budgets and staffing, revoked offers, delayed start dates, virtual onboarding, and changes in service provision. Download the report here.

Figure 1: Adaptations to Summer 2020 Internship Programs, by Company Size

Adaptations
Moved interns to a virtual program
Overall 54.8%
500 or Fewer 61.3%
501 to 1,000 28.6%
1,001 to 2,500 58.1%
2,501 to 5,000 42.2%
5,001 to 10,000 62.2%
10,001 to 20,000 65.7%
More than 20,000 71.2%
Reduced the length of the internship by delaying start date
Overall 48.7%
500 or Fewer 51.6%
501 to 1,000 47.6%
1,001 to 2,500 51.6%
2,501 to 5,000 60.0%
5,001 to 10,000 53.3%
10,001 to 20,000 48.6%
More than 20,000 47.9%
Moved events online such as end of program project presentations
Overall 29.7%
500 or Fewer 32.3%
501 to 1,000 28.6%
1,001 to 2,500 32.3%
2,501 to 5,000 31.1%
5,001 to 10,000 40.0%
10,001 to 20,000 40.0%
More than 20,000 31.5%
Reduced the number of interns we are onboarding
Overall 25.1%
500 or Fewer 19.4%
501 to 1,000 28.6%
1,001 to 2,500 19.4%
2,501 to 5,000 31.1%
5,001 to 10,000 35.6%
10,001 to 20,000 28.6%
More than 20,000 21.9%
No changes
Overall 19.9%
500 or Fewer 25.8%
501 to 1,000 23.8%
1,001 to 2,500 19.4%
2,501 to 5,000 24.4%
5,001 to 10,000 13.3%
10,001 to 20,000 17.1%
More than 20,000 12.3%
Adaptations Overall 500 or Fewer 501 to 1,000 1,001 to 2,500 2,501 to 5,000 5,001 to 10,000 10,001 to 20,000 More than 20,000
Moved interns to a virtual program 54.8% 61.3% 28.6% 58.1% 42.2% 62.2% 65.7% 71.2%
Reduced the length of the internship by delaying start date 48.7% 51.6% 47.6% 51.6% 60.0% 53.3% 48.6% 47.9%
Moved events online such as end of program project presentations 29.7% 32.3% 28.6% 32.3% 31.1% 40.0% 40.0% 31.5%
Reduced the number of interns we are onboarding 25.1% 19.4% 28.6% 19.4% 31.1% 35.6% 28.6% 21.9%
No changes 19.9% 25.8% 23.8% 19.4% 24.4% 13.3% 17.1% 12.3%
Source: NACE Report: COVID-19 Quick Poll Series, National Association of Colleges and Employers. Note: Respondents were asked to select all answers that apply.

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