Internships are an invaluable learning opportunity for students and should be taken seriously. But the most impactful internships are also a lot of fun! A summer internship is an experience that students will remember for the rest of their lives, starting from their official welcome into the organization.
This year, internships are particularly special. For some companies, programs are returning after a year off due to pandemic-forced cancellations. For others, interns are returning to in-person programs after a year of virtual everything. And for many, internships are remaining remote for another year—just with much more planning and better execution after a year of learning how to implement virtual programs.
Whether they are hosting internships virtually, in-person, or in a hybrid format, these companies know that it’s important to make a great first impression. Instead of just welcoming interns with a postcard and a series of meetings, these organizations went above and beyond to give them a great experience this year. Here’s how they did it.
Welcomed With a Baking Kit
Without a doubt, General Mills had one of the most unique, fun, and tasty ways of welcoming their summer interns this year. They welcomed 143 interns from colleges across the United States with a creative task. Each intern was sent a baking kit and asked to create a General Mills masterpiece that the company then shared on social media. Talk about sweetening the deal!
Gifted An Iconic Piece for Their Wardrobe
Levi Strauss & Co, the company best known as the creator of blue jeans, sent their interns a special piece from their collection to complete their summer wardrobes. Interns were given jean jackets embroidered with “Summer 2021” to flaunt their Levi connection.
A Times Square Billboard
Swag is great, but some companies went a bit bolder with their intern welcomes this year. And when we say bold, we mean bold. What’s bigger and bolder than a billboard in the “Crossroads of the World,” Times Square? Two New York-based financial organizations, Morgan Stanley and Nasdaq, welcomed their summer associates and interns with messages in Times Square.
Experiences and Group Bonding
CoStar Group, the leading provider of commercial real estate information, analytics and online marketplaces, made sure to welcome their interns with some really great experiences. Taking advantage of being able to meet in-person, they welcomed their interns with cool trips to the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., building tours, and even a trip to an island. What a great way to help their interns get to know each other!
NewDay USA, a nationwide mortgage company for Veterans, also made sure to give their interns an unforgettable welcome experience. They invited interns to M&T Bank Stadium for their first day, where they were given a VIP tour of the locker rooms, took pictures on the field, and even had a chance to listen to Coach Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens speak and share tips for success.
Leveraged Their Own Platform
Pinterest took advantage of their own platform and welcomed their “pinterns” with a special pinterest board. Each intern was highlighted with their very own pin!
Shared Advice
Several companies welcomed interns with some helpful advice.
BMO, one of the largest banks in North America, took a really creative approach to sharing advice with their interns. The company encouraged employees to share their own BMO version of the “how it started/how it’s going” meme to show their progression at the company and provide some helpful words of advice to interns starting their own BMO careers. See all the inspirational posts here.
Sam’s Club also gave their interns some helpful advice, courtesy of last year’s interns. With this year’s internship remaining virtual, the first class to go online gave some really good insight into the program for their successors. Sam’s Club also asked their LinkedIn followers to give any additional tips, crowdsourcing recommendations for the students.
Keeping with the trend, Novartis also asked their LinkedIn followers to give their interns some advice. The virtual interns received some pretty good tips in the comments!
Welcome Videos
Some companies, like Goldman Sachs and Amazon, took to their social accounts to share welcome videos for their interns.
Goldman Sachs welcomed their interns with a brief, fun video on social introducing a handful of the participants. Their program is being held in-person, and the firm continued the welcome with a reception in their office as they brought both interns and full-time employees back for the first time in over a year.
Amazon also shared a welcome video for their interns on social media, drawing on the experiences of past interns. The company is hosting its largest intern class ever in 2021, with over 10,000 interns worldwide. Unlike last year’s program, which was entirely virtual, this year’s interns had the choice to remain remote or opt for a hybrid model, choosing to work remotely part of the time and go into the office the other days.
Lots and Lots of Swag
Of course, many companies welcomed their interns with swag packs to help them show off their company pride and get ready for their internship.
Best Buy, for example, sent interns “Welcome to Best Buy” boxes, which participants then took to social media to share.
Ernst & Young did the same, hyping up students before they started their internships with cool swag packs. They also encouraged followers to leave advice for their interns on their LinkedIn, helping to set them up for success.
With creative welcomes like these, imagine how great the internships must be! We're sure all of these interns are learning a lot while having a fun, enriching experience.
