As the school year comes to a close and summer break approaches, many high school and college students begin looking for summer internships or other work-based learning (WBL) opportunities to grow in their field of study and add substance to their resume. Increasingly, employers view students’ work-based learning experiences as a key indicator of both industry knowledge and career readiness, raising the stakes for students to apply for and complete these experiences and have a more successful chance of entering the workforce at a high level.
Regarding student preferences within WBL opportunities, a report published in June of 2021 conducted by the National Survey of College Internships (NSCI) out of the University of Wisconsin detailed key findings about student access to internships and the importance of employer engagement. Key findings from the study included:
- The quality of employer supervision and mentoring is critical for a successful student experience, and students rated their supervisors support for their well-being higher than their supervisors work related task-specific monitoring
- 3% of students who hadn’t taken an internship reported they wanted to but could not due to a variety of obstacles like pay, transportation, or scheduling.
The full NSCI report can be found here.
Research also tells us that too many underrepresented and first-generation students are not able to take advantage of activities like internships and networking that help them stand out in their job searches. The San Antonio community is working hard to strengthen the classroom to career connection and change the trajectory for students’ futures. There are a plethora of internship and work-based learning opportunities available to eligible individuals throughout the San Antonio region for the upcoming summer break. Here are just a few work-based learning programs to which you could connect:
- SA Works paid internship program available for students ages 16-20.
- Family Service’s summer intern experience available for students ages 14-17. This program provides college and career readiness to over 200 youths annually, is a paid experience, is 6-8 weeks long, and is offered in 3 different modalities: classic in-person, completely virtual, or a classic & virtual hybrid option.
- CAST Schools paid student internships available to CAST students.
- City of San Antonio Ambassador Summer Internship Program available to college students who’ve at least completed 2 semesters and either graduated from a San Antonio high school or are enrolled in a college/university in San Antonio.
These programs are currently seeking placement opportunities and can make it easy for you to maximize the benefit of hiring young people. Beyond tackling financial hurdles to taking part in internships, our local education institutions also seek employers who can help them identify competencies required for specific internships and craft career literacy into current courses of study. If you are interested in learning more or want some help with how to begin engaging students in your organization, please contact Katie Ferrier, VP, Education and Workforce Development.