Research: International

student employability

Hannah Drover

Executive General Manager

Readygrad

November 2018

The role of internships

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What’s the deal?

We work with over

5,000 host companies

across all sectors, in

all states of Australia

and will place over

6,500students into

internships this year

455,000+ commencing

international students

in Australia in 2017,

worth over

$28b to our economy

(Department of

Education & Training)

32.7% of all higher

education

students in 2017

were from

overseas

(Universities

Australia)

44% of our international

interns are hired

immediately by

their host company,

following an

internship

RESEARCH: INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY - THE ROLE OF INTERNSHIPS

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Who are the students?

Undergraduate

Postgraduate

Current student

n31 n348 n162 Professional Internship Program Professional Year AccountingProfessional Year IT

541 responses

100% international students

Completed an internship in last 3 years

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What did you expect to achieve from your internship?

1. Gain practical experience in a workplace

2. Get a start in my career

3. Work on

real projects

(PIP)

3. Improve my understanding

of conditions and

expectations in Australian

workplaces (PY Acc)

3. Exposure to

the reality of

work in my

industry (PY IT)

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Overall, how would you rate your internship experience?

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

PIP PY Acc PY IT PIP PY Acc PY IT PIP PY Acc PY IT PIP PY Acc PY IT PIP PY Acc PY IT

Outstanding Very good Good Satisfactory Poor

85% of interns rated

their experience as

Good, Very Good or

Outstanding

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Perception vs reality

76% of interns said their perception of

Australian businesses were

somewhat or much more

positive following their internship

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Very poorly , 3%

Poorly , 5%

Neutral , 27%

Well , 41%

Very well , 24%

How well did your university course prepare you for the reality of working in an Australian business?

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Benefits

Confidence

Employment

Practical application of

technical skills

Networks and relationships

Real industry experience

(localise skills)

Challenges

Repetitive tasks

Working in teams

Application of technical

knowledge

Learning new tasks and skills

Communication

Pressure of performance

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Communication concerns

Need for real local experience with references

Lack of willingness to try and learn

Need for a network

Lack of confidence

PR / visa constraints or perceptions

Challenges facing international students

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Who are the host companies?

285 873% Number of responses Average interns hosted annuallyIntern through Readygrad

46%

15%

9%

17%

12%

Employee numbers

0-20

21-50

51-100

101-500

More than 500

66%

73%

54%

40%

5%Hiring manager

Mentor

Team member working withinterns

All of the above

None of the above

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Reduce overhead constraint –

rolling internship program

Consistent expectations from

employers, program to support

Have an intern with better technical

skills / fits our program better

Need training on technical software

prior to being in workplace

Willingness to learn

ImprovementsOutstanding ,

15%

Very good , 55%

Good , 24%

Satisfactory , 6% Poor , 1%

Overall, how would you rate your experience hosting international student interns?

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Interns’ attributes rated

RESEARCH: INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY - THE ROLE OF INTERNSHIPS

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“You get back what you put in -

You do need to spend quality

time with the intern but my

experience to date has been

excellent.

Their willingness to learn and

pick up tasks is outstanding and

our business has found it very

valuable.”

Reciprocal relationships

“You’ll get the most value if you have

good value to give back to the intern.

For example, an interesting project for

them to learn from, as opposed to

giving them low level work that doesn’t

engage them. If you don’t have a project

running for them... think of one!”

Wrap up:

Comparisons

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Perception vs reality

Prior to an internship… Following an internship…

Only

30% of host companies rated

their intern’s employability

as good or very good

41% of interns rated their

employability as good or

very good

However

87% of host companies rated

their intern’s employability

as good or very good

82% of interns rated their

employability as good or

very good

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Attributes rated

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Reasons for hiring – intern versus employer

Internships create employment

outcomes

Student expectations need to be

managed – opportunities and skill

levels

Preparation is absolutely critical for

students and employers both

Host companies will get back what

value they put in, but we must make it

easy for them

Host companies hire for soft skills

after basic technical skills are met

Enthusiasm, work ethic, and a

willingness to learn goes a long way

for interns

SMEs hire international students!

Takeaways

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Motivations, perceptions and employability:

Why companies hire international students

Get your copy of the whitepaper

visit the Readygrad team at our stand or all over the conference!

Download it from:

intern.readygrad.com.au/industry-insights-whitepaper

Hannah Drover

Executive General Manager

hannah.drover@Readygrad.com.au