Student expectations
A level graduates waiting to enter university are probably looking for a high salary rather than experience through an internship as they have still yet to decide on what to major in university. One way to appeal to them without a high salary would be to show them that the experience gained through the internship will give them a headstart in university and prove to be much more valuable in the future.
Local university students do not place as much emphasis on the salary offered, but focus more on how the internship can give them industry experience and beef up their resume for the future. Explain to them that while working at established MNCs would offer more stability, working at a startup can be very dynamic and provide them with much more exposure than what they would get from an MNC. This experience would allow them to be involved in many more domains outside of their expertise which puts them ahead of others. They might also discover new talents through the dynamic job scope as a surprise takeaway from the internship.
Finally for polytechnic students, they are probably completing the internship as a requirement for their final year project and they would be more interested to know if the internship can get them that A+ than how much salary they will be paid. You would appeal to them greatly if you explain that the job scope is flexible and can be adapted to fit their final year project requirements and provide guidance on their internship report.
The final steps
After sorting out your expectations and deciding on your target group of students as your potential interns, the hiring process begins. It is really as simple as reaching out to the career offices, crafting that perfect job description, reviewing resumes, scheduling and conducting interviews, and finally giving the offer.
As a startup you probably have limited manpower, but it would be great if you can have one person devoted to the entire hiring process and knows things inside out to answer any questions from the career offices and your applicants. Show that your company is organized and values the hiring of interns despite being a short staffed startup company. Having said so, you would probably want a co-founder to be present in interviews, once again to show that you value the employees that are hired, even if its just an intern.
Startup culture sounds like fun, yet mysterious at the same time as there are probably few reviews available for your applicant to read online. During the interview, be upfront about your company culture and tell the students how fun it would be to work for you. Manage their expectations and let them know what types of projects they will be working on, what their responsibilities will be. You want a good fit for your company and the intern would want a good fit for his/her personality as well.
Hopefully my blog was a good read and these tips can help you find that star intern for your startup.
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