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Student Internships and Employment Opportunities after Graduation: A Field Experiment

Author

Listed:
  • Baert, Stijn

    (Ghent University)

  • Neyt, Brecht

    (Ghent University)

  • Siedler, Thomas

    (University of Potsdam)

  • Tobback, Ilse

    (KU Leuven)

  • Verhaest, Dieter

    (KU Leuven)

Abstract

Internships during tertiary education have become substantially more common over the past decades in many industrialised countries. This study examines the impact of a voluntary intra-curricular internship experience during university studies on the probability of being invited to a job interview. To estimate a causal relationship, we conducted a randomised field experiment in which we sent 1,248 fictitious, but realistic, resumes to real job openings. We find that applicants with internship experience have, on average, a 12.6% higher probability of being invited to a job interview.

Suggested Citation

  • Baert, Stijn & Neyt, Brecht & Siedler, Thomas & Tobback, Ilse & Verhaest, Dieter, 2019. "Student Internships and Employment Opportunities after Graduation: A Field Experiment," IZA Discussion Papers 12183, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12183
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Nunley, John M. & Pugh, Adam & Romero, Nicholas & Seals, R. Alan, 2016. "College major, internship experience, and employment opportunities: Estimates from a résumé audit," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 37-46.
    2. Stijn Baert & Bart Cockx & Niels Gheyle & Cora Vandamme, 2015. "Is There Less Discrimination in Occupations Where Recruitment Is Difficult?," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 68(3), pages 467-500, May.
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    21. Drydakis, Nick, 2016. "The effect of university attended on graduates’ labour market prospects: A field study of Great Britain," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 192-208.
    22. Stijn Baert & Sunčica Vujić, 2018. "Does it pay to care? Volunteering and employment opportunities," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 31(3), pages 819-836, July.
    23. Marianne Bertrand & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2004. "Are Emily and Greg More Employable Than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment on Labor Market Discrimination," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(4), pages 991-1013, September.
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    25. Dieter Verhaest & Stijn Baert, 2018. "The effects of workplace learning in higher education on employment and match quality: is there an early-career trade-off?," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 55(3), pages 1229-1270, November.
    26. Joanna Lahey & Ryan Beasley, 2016. "Technical Aspects of Correspondence Studies," NBER Working Papers 22818, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    27. Dieter Verhaest & Elene Bogaert & Jeroen Dereymaeker & Laura Mestdagh & Stijn Baert, 2018. "Do Employers Prefer Overqualified Graduates? A Field Experiment," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(3), pages 361-388, July.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Thanos Mergoupis & Robertas Zubrickas, 2024. "Work experience, information revelation, and study effort," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 76(2), pages 495-513.
    2. Isaac Kofi Mensah & Muhammad Khalil Khan & Deborah Simon Mwakapesa, 2023. "Factors determining the entrepreneurial intentions among Chinese university students: the moderating impact of student internship motivation," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-15, December.
    3. Thomas Bolli & Katherine Caves & Maria Esther Oswald-Egg, 2021. "Valuable Experience: How University Internships Affect Graduates’ Income," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 62(8), pages 1198-1247, December.
    4. Neyt, Brecht & Verhaest, Dieter & Baert, Stijn, 2019. "The Impact of Internship Experience During Secondary Education on Schooling and Labour Market Outcomes," GLO Discussion Paper Series 425, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    5. Di Meglio, Gisela & Barge-Gil, Andrés & Camiña, Ester & Moreno, Lourdes, 2019. "Knocking on Employment´s Door: Internships and Job Attainment," MPRA Paper 95712, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. John Baguma Muhunga Kule & Manasseh Tumuhimbise & Frederick Nsambu Kijjambu & Wilbroad Aryatwijuka & Sarah Akampurira, 2024. "From Realizable Dreams to Sustainable Reality: An Empirical Study on the Relationship between Internship Experience and Future Career Prospects among Business Students," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 16(2), pages 27-31.
    7. Ilse Tobback & Dieter Verhaest & Stijn Baert, 2024. "Internships, Hiring Outcomes and Underlying Mechanisms: A Stated Preferences Experiment," De Economist, Springer, vol. 172(1), pages 25-48, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    field experiment; internship; hiring; human capital; signalling;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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