Internship opportunities up 200% in 5 years

As per data, 23 percent of internships offered pre-placement offers (PPOs) based on intern performance.

There has been a 200 percent increase in internship opportunities for Indian students over the past five years, career-tech platform Internshala has said in a report.

Though the Annual Internship Hiring Trends 2024 report did not provide the break up for every year, in 2023, business development and management took the lead, offering 44 percent of all internships.

This reflected a strong demand for profiles in sales, marketing, digital marketing, business development, customer support and operations.

Engineering followed at 20 percent, providing technology-focused internships in programming, AutoCAD, civil, web and app development.

The media sector contributed 18 percent, offering diverse profiles such as creative writing, journalism, videography, photography and PR.

The design presented 5 percent of internship opportunities, while education and volunteering each held 3 percent. Finance and data science made valuable contributions at 2 percent and a percent.

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As per data, 23 percent of internships offered pre-placement offers (PPOs) based on intern performance. Virtual internships accounted for a substantial 48 percent, offering work-from-home flexibility, while 42 percent remained in-office internships.

The average stipend in 2023 was Rs 8,000 a month, with the highest going up to Rs 1,35,000. Internships were for a week to six months, averaging 3.66 months.

Geographically, Delhi-NCR held the lion's share at 34 percent internship openings followed by Mumbai at 16 percent, Bengaluru at 10 percent, Pune at 5 percent, Hyderabad and Jaipur at 3 percent each.

Most in-demand skills

Examining hiring preferences, recruiters sought skills such as verbal/spoken English proficiency, which was asked for in 15 percent of internships. MS Excel, social media marketing and digital marketing were key requirements in 4 percent of internships each. Skills like SEO, creative writing, Adobe Photoshop, and MS Office were also required for 3 percent of internships each.

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Among shortlisted applicants, 33 percent pursued a Bachelor’s in Technology (BTech), highlighting a strong inclination towards tech roles. As many as 23 percent were recent graduates, 22 percent were third-year students, and 19 percent were fourth-year students.

“Since 2010, Internshala has been on a mission of bringing awareness about internships and connecting the students with meaningful internship opportunities. While in the past five years, internship opportunities have seen a remarkable 200 percent growth that is, a 3x growth since 2018,” said Sarvesh Agrawal, the founder and CEO of Internshala.