College summer break typically lasts around two to three months – the longest school holiday of the year. Some career-savvy college students maximize their summer break by getting an internship, which is a fantastic way to develop practical skills in the real world and boost their resumes.
If you’re looking for a summer internship for 2024, now’s the time to apply. If you’re looking for a placement for this summer, it’s not too late – there are often last minute roles advertised, particularly at smaller businesses.
In this article, we look into the overall internship job market this year and reveal the top sectors hiring interns for this summer and next summer.
Fewer internships this year
Securing an internship is highly competitive this year, as there are more interested candidates but fewer opportunities available.
There were 11,148 internships in June 2023, down 36% from 17,377 a year ago. Meanwhile, jobseeker interest in internships has increased by 30% year-on-year, with the number of clicks per ad rising from 1.15 to 1.50.
The encouraging news is that this year’s interns are likely to get a bigger paycheck. On average, advertised salaries are sitting at $34,255 (pro-rata) in June 2023, an uptick from $31,621 in June 2022.
Read more: The ultimate guide to internships
Top 5 industries for internship opportunities
Accounting & Finance
Job openings: 1,951
Internships are important to accounting and finance students as many full-time positions require some proven professional experience. Common roles include accounting intern, commercial and business intern, investor services intern, auditing intern, and finance services intern. Typically, they’ll spend their summer in the office of a bank, an insurance company, an accounting firm, or a financial services company. Some of the popular firms include Blackstone Group, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and the Big 4 (Deloitte, KPMG, EY, PwC).
Engineering
Job openings: 650
Engineering internships help students gain practical experience and decide the path they want to pursue since engineering is a broad field. Common engineering internships include mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, and production engineering. Engineering interns can be found working in offices, labs, construction sites, or manufacturing facilities.
IT
Job openings: 561
Since the majority of the business world has gone virtual, IT interns can practically work in any industry they prefer. Database intern, software development intern, data scientist intern, operations intern, and IT analyst intern are some of the most common internship opportunities. Similar to full-time IT positions, many of the IT internship roles are hybrid.
Healthcare & Nursing
Job openings: 545
An internship is essential for healthcare & nursing majors, and it is usually mandatory to complete before graduation. Aspiring doctors and nurses usually intern in hospitals and have mentors giving them a closer look into what a day or a week looks like as a healthcare professional. A nursing intern might be responsible for general tasks such as bathing and dressing patients, checking vitals and jotting down medical information.
Consultancy
Job openings: 539
Consulting is very diverse. Students can go for management consulting, strategy consulting, operations consulting, HR consulting, or technology consulting. An internship can definitely help students select the discipline they are interested in. It’s also a great way to brush up on their communication and problem-solving skills since consulting involves a lot of interactions with clients. The most sought-after advisory firms are McKinsey, Bain, and Boston Consulting Group
Can’t find your sector?
If you are keen to find out about internship opportunities in your sector, have a look at this table.
| Sector | Internship job vacancies, June 2023 |
|---|---|
| Accounting & Finance | 1,951 |
| Engineering | 650 |
| IT | 561 |
| Healthcare & Nursing | 545 |
| Consultancy | 539 |
| PR, Advertising & Marketing | 455 |
| Scientific & QA | 364 |
| Admin | 282 |
| Creative & Design | 269 |
| Sales | 253 |
| Hospitality & Catering | 240 |
| Teaching | 152 |
| HR & Recruitment | 146 |
| Graduate | 112 |
| Customer Services | 106 |
| Retail | 99 |
| Trade & Construction | 80 |
| Legal | 77 |
| Social work | 55 |
| Logistics & Warehouse | 48 |
It’s not too late to apply for a summer internship for next year. There are still plenty of opportunities up for grabs. Start looking for them on Adzuna.
Read more: Top 5 college majors with the highest earning potentials