Collect and evaluate internship applications with online forms
Offering internships to college students can have mutual benefits, setting students up for future success while providing your business with additional support. Internships give students real-world experience in the workplace, college credits, a salary, and mentorship opportunities—while giving you the flexibility to allow experienced employees to pursue more creative or advanced projects.
The key to strengthening your internship program lies in attracting top-tier candidates. Good programs are very competitive, with many excellent candidates to choose from, and lay the groundwork for a potential future hiring pipeline.
The best way to get your internship application in front of the right candidates is with an online internship application form. This makes it easily accessible to students and equally easy for you to collect data and make informed decisions.
Internship application templates
Preparing to accept interns at your business requires a thorough, practical, easy-to-use internship application template—one that collects all the information you need to make the right decision. SurveyMonkey offers a myriad of useful online application forms, each fully customizable to align with your unique requirements and branding.
What’s the value of an online internship application form?
If you’ve been anchored to traditional internship applications, it’s time for a rethink. Gone are the days of struggling to distribute your forms or compare data from multiple applicants. Online forms make the entire application process easier for students and more productive for you. Key advantages include:
Make hiring decisions seamless
Online internship application forms make it simple for you to collect and compare information. Your SurveyMonkey dashboard provides a consolidated view of applicants, in various forms and configurations. If needed, you can export the application data to Google Sheets or integrate directly into your favorite CRM.
Easily publicize your open positions
By using online forms, you can amplify your internship outreach. Embed the form on your company website or simply share a link to the form with colleges, hiring agencies, and employment websites. For offline outreach, you can add a QR code that leads to your form to your printed materials at job fairs and employment events.
Required fields
When creating your internship application form, several fields must be included. If you begin with a template, these may already be present, but you can customize them with the fields you need and your company’s language and branding.
Personal information
As with any application form, it’s essential to collect personal information, in particular contact information, so you can reach applicants for interviews, etc.
Personal information fields may include:
- First name
- Last name
- Address
- Date of birth
- Phone number
- Email address
- Date available to start
- Availability (days/times)
Avoid intrusive, unnecessary questions that may deter some candidates.
Academic data
This helps you evaluate a candidate’s fit for your internship program. Include fields for:
- Name of college or university
- Year of expected graduation
- Current major or program of study
- GPA
- Estimated graduation date
- Academic advisor
- Other relevant colleges/courses
Skills and qualifications
Similar to a job application or volunteer form, provide fields for applicants to list skills and qualifications. This information will help you assess what value they can bring to your business.
Include fields for:
- Volunteer experiences
- Certifications
- Areas of interest
- Work experience
Supporting documents
For a more complete picture of applicants, it’s important to give them the ability to upload supporting documents to your internship application form. SurveyMonkey allows you to provide upload fields right within your application, whether you require particular certifications, essays, resumes, cover letters, or transcripts.
Tips for creating the best internship application
Of course, a successful internship application form is more than just understanding what data you need to collect from applicants. Here are a few tips for a more effective application process:
Timing is everything
Keep the academic calendar in mind when announcing and posting your internship. You want to reach potential seasonal (summer) interns at the time they’re searching for opportunities, which may be up to several months before they would be available to start.
Give information on the role
At the top of your application for internship, provide a brief description of your company, the internship, and your expectations. Students should have a good understanding of what your internship entails—even if they’ve been referred to you via a careers office.
Use integrations to manage applicant data
The strength of online internship applications lies in seamless data management. SurveyMonkey offers easy integrations that allow you to pull applicant data into the CRM solution you already use.
Forms are also useful for later evaluation
Beyond initial applications, an online internship evaluation form simplifies the process of assessing their performance, while feedback forms make it easier for interns to share their own perspective on your program experience.
Start using online internship application forms today
Ready to enhance your internship recruitment? Simplify the process with our online internship application template. It’s easy to create, and a breeze to customize with your company logo, colors, branding assets, and text.
To get started, just sign up for a SurveyMonkey account today and choose the right plan for your business.
Discover more resources
HR toolkit: Make employee experience your competitive advantage
HR leaders can use this toolkit to help drive exceptional employee experiences.
Get started quickly with SurveyMonkey for HR, marketing, and market research pros
How professionals in HR, market research, and marketing can start using surveys--fast.
Employee forms: use cases and templates
Learn how to use employee forms to improve essential HR processes, boost employee experience, and drive change. Discover best practices for creating your own employee forms.
From insights to impact: Leveraging curiosity to build more inclusive workplaces
A discussion at how to create a more equitable workplace.