Internships after graduation: Advice for Long Island grads looking to stand out in a competitive job market

Smithtown native Jaime Yoos felt intimidated the first time she walked into the control room above the hockey rink at UBS Arena.

Yoos, then a senior at Hofstra University, had just started an internship with the Islanders. She recalled, “I didn’t really know what to expect."

But the 21-year-old said she soon struck up friendships with her colleagues and learned to operate the software that feeds content such as fan selfies to the Elmont arena’s massive four-sided video board.

Best of all, the paid internship ultimately led to her dream job: The new grad will soon start working as a production assistant for the Yankees.

The Islanders experience “definitely helped,” the longtime Yankees fan said. “An internship is just a great way to make connections and to network and to get experience.”

As college seniors across Long Island prepare for graduation, trading the halls of academia for the "real world," they are facing an employment outlook that has improved recently but remains challenging.

“The job market is still competitive,” said Marc Oppenheim, executive director of the Hofstra career center.

College career counselors say one way recent graduates can stand out is internships. This on-the-job training, which can be paid or unpaid, helps students gain the skills they need and make the personal connections that can lead to full-time employment, counselors said.

“There's definitely more appetite for employers to hire this segment,” said Nicole Bachaud, a labor economist with California-based jobs site ZipRecruiter. “A lot of employers are cognizant of the need to create that pipeline and to mold today's grads … into the experts for tomorrow's labor force.”

The number of internship listings has jumped more than 30% from a year ago, an April report by ZipRecruiter shows.

Employers say they expect to take on 3.9% more interns this year than they did last year, a recent report by the National Association of Colleges and Employers shows. Last year, employers reported to NACE that they offered jobs to nearly 72% of their interns — up from 62% the previous year, the survey found.

A majority of internships offer compensation, with pay working out to a median $20 an hour, Bachaud said. A 2024 survey by NACE found that 57% of interns reported receiving payment.

Read on for advice from college career counselors and students on how to find the right internship and, ultimately, land a job:

Don’t be afraid to reach out

Riana Kamath, 21, who grew up in Pittsburgh, majored in public relations and minored in graphic design and mass media studies at Hofstra. She said she has contacted alumni and other public relations professionals through LinkedIn and by asking professors for contacts.

“Just going about building a relationship from scratch can seem a little scary,” Kamath said, “but more times than not, I have received such positive feedback just from cold reaching out…. It shows that you care and you're excited about the opportunity.”

Kamath, who graduated this month, has landed multiple internships, including one at Hunter, a PR and marketing firm where she said she gained “a huge portfolio to work with, a lot of hands-on experience.”

She will soon start a full-time job at Hunter, and she believes it helped that she let her manager know how much the firm means to her.

“I wanted to show that effort, that I cared and I wanted to contribute and stay,” she said.

Develop your 'soft' skills

Anthony Attanasio, 21, of Manorville, recently earned his bachelor's degree from Stony Brook University and is completing a one-year master’s program there in accounting and analytics. He is also working a paid internship at Stony Brook’s career center, where he handles data management as well as student and alumni engagement for the school’s online networking platform.

The internship has taught him skills and introduced him to people, he said. In particular, he said, the internship has helped grow his "soft" skills like communication.

As artificial intelligence takes on more administrative tasks, employers are placing more emphasis on finding employees who can work well with others, according to a recent ZipRecruiter report.

“Even before AI, networking was important,” Attanasio said. But, he said, “it's so hard nowadays to get a job because there's just so many applications, so being able to stand out and make that human connection is so critical.”

If your field’s hiring outlook is grim, seek out related work in other industries

AI has impacted hiring in software development, but the healthcare sector remains strong, said Adrienne McNally, senior director for career success and experiential education at New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury.

“You don't have to work at a technology company to do tech work,” she said. “When a hospital is hiring, they are not only hiring clinicians like nurses and doctors. ... They [also] need people who understand computer science and data.”

If internships are not available or don’t pay enough, there are other ways to gain valuable experience

Under state and federal law, unpaid internships must be educational and meet other criteria — but regardless of how beneficial the experience might be, college career counselors say many low- and middle-income students simply cannot afford to go without payment.

Many recruiters like to see customer service experience on a student's resume, said Cristen D’Accordo, director of the career center at Molloy University in Rockville Centre.

“I always tell them, any work is good work,” she said of the students she advises. “If you were a waitress or a bus boy … maybe you dealt with a customer that wasn't happy, and that skill set is going to carry on with you to your future career.”

David Oroza, director of pre-professional advising and fellowships at Adelphi University in Garden City, said aspiring lawyers could work at the offices of elected officials: “You can work anywhere, you can do anything and get the life experience that you need."

In an effort to help more students complete internships, the State University of New York has budgeted $14.5 million a year to fund paid internships, and the state also offers paid public service internships for SUNY students through the Empire State Service Corps, now entering its third year, among other programs.

“This is all about equity and access,” said Marianna Savoca, associate vice president for career readiness and experiential education at Stony Brook University. “Universities all over the country are talking about this issue, and we are trying to figure out ways to help.”