[Negrita]

Happy Friday all!! Question because there are so many professionals with great advice/insight.

My almost 21yo son is a junior at GMU. Accounting major.
He’s been searching for a summer internship with no luck. We are of course praying he finds one soon.

He’s gone to 1 interview, no go. Another kind rejection letter. (Yes, he’s gone to career services, recruiting events, networks, hubs and I have also spead the word to friends/etc.)

This said: what if he doesn’t find one? How detrimental would this be for him; to be able to find a job after graduation next spring?

He’s worked since HS but had to quit last month due to a heavy course load. If he doesn’t get an internship for the summer he plans to go to school full time and go back to work part time at a bank.

And of course he plans to continue trying applying to everything he can.

I’m worried of course and wanted to get some insight on this internship thing.

Thanks all!!

[Damaso]

Is his search nationwide?
Is he limiting the scope of his search?

My son didn’t find his internship until the first year of grad school.
MBA Accounting Kelley School of Business.

He is now working for an accounting firm here in Los Angeles.
Keep pursuing and don’t get discouraged.

Good luck!!!

[Miriam]

Has he looked in the banks? My nephew is a banker. He got an internship in a bank before graduating college.

Now works for that company (Morgan Chase). Even any local bank will do.

My daughter also works in a bank (TD bank), they are always looking for people.

[Jenny]

Keep looking. Accounting is such a versatile field, I would not worry if he doesn’t have an internship lined up.

It would be great if he could because it may lead to a job offer when he graduates.

[Allison]

It’s a tough market. My son is a junior, Finance major and also hasn’t found an internship.

There was a post on the Grown & Flown parents page last week with 100s of comments of students who are in the same boat.

Good luck.

[Cheryl]

does he live in NOVA? If so, I would also use the local community (FB) pages and put out there he is looking for a summer intern.

He could try Oakton, Fairfax, NoVa. Vienna. Chantilly.

[Elena]

I know you’re a super loving parent, and your kid is lucky to have you. And I think you need to let your kid adult.

Iron is forged in fire, and they will be better off learning how to stand in their own two feet

[Matt]

It’s all about networking. Geo-search by most any company with any accounting department, not nessisarily an accountant company contracted out to other companies.

Perform well and get a good recommendation.

Good “best use” alternate plan of doing school if internship doesn’t work. Definitely good that they are looking into it now vs trying to start research at the end of the semester.

Also, do they have an internship-centric LinkedIn profile setup?

[Ashlee]

I was there 10 years ago, some background, I graduated in 2014 with an accounting degree and decided to pursue my CPA instead of a master’s, mainly to avoid student debt.

Looking back, getting my CPA was the best career move I made.

It really opened doors for me.
My key advice for your son is this: prioritize the CPA exam, especially if internships don’t pan out.

Also, if
he gets rejected, encourage him to ask for feedback.

During my time at Big 4, I learned that a positive attitude and a willingness to learn are more valuable than anything.

I could teach the technical stuff, but I couldn’t teach someone to be eager and analytical.

The good news is, accountants are in high demand right now! If internships are tough, local firms are a great option, or he can focus on getting his CPA.

I hope this helps! I’m happy to answer any more questions he may have. Overall I love my degree and so grateful for it.

[Jule]

Internships are helpful but not having one on your resume, doesn’t mean you won’t get a job.

I’ve hired and also helped hire students out of college (in tech) without internships.

Although he should keep practicing and polishing his interview skills as much as he can.

[Ashley]

My daughter graduated from GMU with a finance degree and no internships. She got a job right after graduation doing wealth management with a big company…and it came down to networking.

I would have him reach out to the Fairfax Small Business Association (probably through the county) and ask if there is a way he could offer basic services to a small business.

If he could learn to set up Quickbooks (youtube can help) he can offer that service plus a quick tutorial to a new business – it’s much needed and it will look good for his resume.

I HATED setting up Quickbooks when we were starting our business and paid our accountant to set it up and reconcile the first couple of bank statements.

[Ranell]

If he already has an ‘in’ at a bank, he may consider pursuing the Chartered Financial Analyst certification.

The bank may even help pay for the tests.

[John]

The fact is many firms have scaled back their internship programs. This started last year as the hype around AI made many firms revisit their longer term staffing projections and has gotten much worse with the whipsaw policy shifts and wreckingball cuts being inflicted upon IRS…

My strong advice is to continue to push to get something lined up.

It is TAX SEASON and smaller firms are almost certainly realizing they have staff shortages, which helps drive home the need for interns & new hires BUT it also means hiring managers may be under extreme pressure to deal with current workload and not as responsive / polite / encouraging as they are when unpressured.

Acknowledge this with SHORTENED résumé with very “high impact” bullet points, a brief but HONEST email that emphasizes things where you’ve jumped in and gotten productive FAST, and even using texts and/or LinkedIn vs work email…

Working full time is NOT A BAD THING! If the bank has a reliable manager that can write a good Letter of Recommendation that can be a wonderful plus when looking for fulltime career — recruiters LOVE to hear about folks with a solid WORK ETHIC!

[Nate]

Not getting a summer internship will not change anything. Is it better, yes but not the end of the world.

[Linda]

This is definitely a tough year for internships. He should continue searching. My son didnt find one until late April last year. If he does’t find one, don’t worry its fine.

It’s a nice to have not a need to have. Working full time during the summer will also be a good experience.

Maybe he could volunteer for an accounting project locally while he works. Best of luck.

[Caroline]

Is he planning to take the CPA exam? If yes, consider studying for it when he’s a senior. It may easier since he will be in study mode.

Maybe enroll in one of those CPA test prep courses since they can provide structure.

[Tony]

I work in this space. Based on research, internships, work experience, volunteerism, work study jobs, and other practical and experiential learning opportunities are what supervisors look for and value above all else when hiring recent undergraduates – moreso than major, school, GPA, and other metrics.

A supervisor will look to hire a candidate with experience who can hit the ground running and immediately contribute to the bottom line of the company over someone who doesn’t have any soft or hard skill experience in a work setting and would require more of a learning curve.

It’s not essential, but completing 2-3 internships during college will provide a recent graduate with a significant leg up over other candidates who do not have similar experience.

The one thing your son can immediately do is check in with the study abroad office.

Lots of study abroad program providers (like my own) partner with universities to place students in guaranteed internship placements overseas.

The deadline for most summer programs is usually mid-February to early March to enroll in one of these programs, but some internship providers may be flexible with dates.

Students don’t typically get paid on these programs, but they do get academic credit (like a regular study abroad experience) and less than 1% of all students do an international internship, which would help to set him apart from other candidates.

[Author]

Posts