The Right Summer Intern

The Right Summer Intern

Now that you've announced summer internship opportunities, you've probably been bombarded with resumes of interested candidates. Now you have to determine who is worth interviewing.  
For many employers, screening resumes for full time positions is no big deal- you know what you are looking for resumes of candidates who have taken part in some extra-curricular activities, and interned in companies that actually taught them something of relevance to the job they are applying for with you. But, when it comes to the resume screening of summer internship candidates, most employers pause, unsure what they are looking for. While some will ponder over how to ensure proper selection of their interns, because they realize the added value of making the right decision, others will stream through the selection process, not thinking too much of how important this step is. 
 

How does the resume screening process of an intern differ from that of a recent graduate, for a full time position? Well, the first, most obvious difference is that the intern doesn't have a formal college degree yet, which makes it difficult to assess a person's technical suitability for a job. To by pass this short coming, it would be a good idea to look at their education from another angle- concentrate on the courses they have taken, since this will give you an indication as to how developed this candidate with relation the job content. Of course, if you are selecting candidates for a position that depends on character and transferable skills, rather than technical knowledge, you will not need to worry much about this point (although the type of courses will give an insight into the candidate's educational background and academic interests/competencies). 
 

Another noticeable difference between the resume of an intern-to-be and a future full timer is the amount of previous work experience. If the potential intern is a freshman or a sophomore (first or second year student), chances are your internship will be their first. So, how do you determine their suitability if they haven't experienced the world of work before? In this case, it would be advisable to look at any extra-curricular activities or community service they may have been a part of. This is a good indication of their character- that they are aware of the importance of supplementing their education with different experiences. Most ambitious and enlightened students in the region are now quite aware of the importance of participating in activities, so this should not be a difficult requirement. However, depending on the vacancy at hand, you may want to probe further and analyze the quality of the activity they were a part of, the level of responsibility the took on, and their achievement in it (in practical and value-added terms).
 

Of course you will get the occasional novice who has done nothing yet- no activities and no internships. Do you screen them out immediately because of this? Or is there something else you can look for that would justify an interview? This is a point that requires your sense of better judgment. Taking into consideration the opportunity at hand, do consider the following: is this a freshman who has not had a chance yet to experience even an on-campus activity, or is it a junior who has come to his senses a little bit too late? Is this someone who has a GPA of 3.0 or above (very good or above), and so appears to have spent a lot of time studying, or is his/her GPA below 3.0, and so appears to be irresponsible, or not genuinely interested in his/her well-being? What is the overall impression of the resume- neat, organized and error-free, or full of spelling and layout mistakes?  
 

Once these questions are answered, it will be much easier for you to decide if this person is worth your interviewing time- even if the obvious positive signs are not there. And of course don't forget that there will always be the challenge of taking on a total novice, and be the first contributor to the shaping of the corporate experience and character (given that the position at hand permits, of course).  
 

Good luck with your screening process. Once you've decided who you want to interview, do check out our upcoming list of suggested interview questions for summer interns (coming soon!).