The Best Internships For 2019 - Poets&Quants

The Google campus is filled with buildings with joyful touches

Let’s admit it: brand names matter. You take notice when you hear someone interns at Apple, Goldman Sachs or McKinsey. So do employers. And when it comes to the best summer internships for MBAs, top honors belong to Google according to Vault, a leading collector of market intelligence for employer ratings and reviews. For the fourth consecutive year, Google fended off all contenders in Vault’s 2019 “Most Prestigious Internships” ranking. Demonstrably tech-heavy at the top, the prestige ranking features Apple as the runner-up, with Microsoft, Tesla, and Facebook rounding out the top five firms.

CULTURE AND MISSION CENTRAL TO GOOGLE’S APPEAL

Vault’s prestige ranking focuses on which companies are most “desirable” to students. The results are taken from a survey of 13,000 current and former interns, whose ranks include both graduate and undergraduate students. Along with rating their own internships – which is covered separately in Vault’s “50 Best Internships” ranking – the sample also evaluated the prestige of a list of employers, using a 10 point scale where 10 is a “It’s a dream job” and 1 means “No one wants to work here.”

You won’t hear the latter sentence uttered much at Google. That’s because the company is organized with employee satisfaction at the forefront. Look no further at the Googleplex headquarters, with perks designed to remove all clutter and distraction from employees. That starts with free gourmet meals (and even cooking classes). The venue offers everything from an onsite health center and daycare to haircuts, laundry, and shuttles…not to mention a fitness center too. Yes, employees can bring their dogs to the office too. Beyond that, employees enjoy flexible work schedules, a friendly parental leave policy, PTO for volunteering, and even equity.

However, it is the company’s culture and mission that truly resonates with employees. In a growth-mindset company that is constantly innovating, employees are encouraged to think outside the box, experiment, create, and occasionally fail (fast, preferably). Even more, Google is seemingly the place to be if you want to actively shape the future, as the company moves into spaces like driverless cars and artificial intelligence. Indeed, Google is expanding upon its stated mission to make information “universally accessible” – and becoming a player in fields outside the internet. No wonder the company receives two million resumes a year!

APPLE CLOSING THE GAP WITH GOOGLE IN PRESTIGE

Apple CEO Tim Cook

Chances are, some of them will come from survey respondents, who universally gave the firm a thumbs up in responses shared exclusively with Poets&Quants. The appeal is summed up by one respondent: “Impressive on resume, everyone knows Google, super far reaching – found everywhere, impact in everything from phones to web to hardware, great pay, great work environment, the leaders in so many things tech related, passionate, “Do the right thing” slogan is awesome, best-of-the-best work there, hire me please.”

Google isn’t the end-all-be-all for prospective interns, however. Just look at Apple, which has finished as the runner-up to Google in all four of Vault’s prestige rankings. The silver lining? The gap is increasingly shrinking, with just .247 of a point separating the two firms – way down from the .411 difference just three years ago. To some, Apple has lost a step after the death of Steve Jobs, missing out on the digital assistant craze and losing the top spot for camera phones. Despite this, Vault intern respondents often described Apple using terms seemingly culled from the Google lexicon.

A big advantage for Apple is familiarity. “[A] company that many people entering job market grew up on their technology,” writes on intern. Another laid out their positioning this way: “Very popular, great culture. Strives for innovation.” That’s not to say the company receives rave reviews from every corner, however. One respondent described the firm as “prohibitively Apple secretive,” with another adding, “BS pricing on products makes me dislike them.” The harshest criticism?  “A cult of their devices.”

FACEBOOK LOSING ITS LUSTER?

Microsoft may not have the “cool” factor going for it like Google and Apple. Over the past four prestige rankings, it has gained nearly .4 of a point from prospective interns. The tech giant is summed up this way by one survey respondent: “Microsoft does everything, and does everything very well. Probably the most respected software based company on the planet.” Another respondent trumpeted the company’s “awesome culture” and “high pay” – with a third citing that interns “learn a lot” and receive “good development opportunities.” However, survey respondents clicked off some downsides to interning at Microsoft as well. For one, it isn’t easy to get hired there. “Heard [it is] incredibly competitive and only take top-tier candidates, notes one respondent. “Seems like it isn’t as innovative anymore,” adds another.

The intern reviews weren’t as upbeat at Facebook, which slid from 3rd to 5th in 2019. Despite being dogged by a data breach scandal, the firm earned plenty of acclaim from interns. One intern lauded Facebook’s “awesome culture” and “phenomenal pay.” Another noted how the company name still “looks impressive on a resume.” Even more, Facebook is hardly resting on its laurels. “Very innovative company,” writes one intern, “works hard to stay ahead of industry curves, much larger than anyone realizes.”

That said, interns have taken note of the bad press, as every positive comment is seemingly followed up with an asterisk. “Not a fan of this company,” asserts one intern. “I don’t trust them after all the scandals they’ve had this year with transparency.” “Slowly ruining their name,” adds another survey respondent. Perhaps the most damning comment of all? “Hard internship to get, but company doesn’t seem extraordinary anymore.”

TESLA RISES…IN SPITE OF ELON MUSK

Facebook isn’t the only one that has been courting controversy in recent years. Case in point: Elon Musk. Earlier this fall, Musk was docked $20 million dollars by the Securities & Exchange Commission for making false statements about Tesla’s finances in a tweet. His response? He labeled the SEC as the “Shortseller Enrichment Commission.” Such impulsiveness, coupled with an incident where he allegedly smoked marijuana during a podcast, have left many wondering if the tech pioneer has become another Howard Hughes – a man who is increasing losing self-control in the face of shareholder demands for increased automobile production and profitability.

Oxford MBA students visiting Tesla. Courtesy photo

Alas, Musk personifies the Gen-Y spirit. A brazen visionary, Musk tackles the big issues with the potential to transform how people live: space travel, high-speed “hyperloop” transportation, and artificial intelligence. As a result, legions of ambitious business professionals and engineers flock to his fledgling ventures. That includes Tesla, his Palo Alto umbrella that includes everything from electric cars to solar panels to batteries and chargers.

Not surprisingly, Tesla has become one of the hottest tickets for prospective interns, with its prestige ranking increasing from 6th to 4th over the past year. The upside? For starters, according to one survey respondent, there is an “almost 100% hire rate of interns.” Another touts the Elon Musk name, adding “interns make $28/hour and are allowed to work overtime, and it’s in California.” Beyond that, the attraction is what anyone might expect, including “great product and reputation,” “cutting-edge innovation,” “constant collaboration,” and “impressive on a resume.”

TWO ELON MUSK COMPANIES RANKED AMONG THE 10 MOST PRESTIGIOUS

Like Facebook, Tesla also comes with a dark side. One intern, who worked at a different firm, equated working for Tesla to “slave labor.” Another cited the firm’s “amazing projects,” but added this caveat: “You will burn out – heavy workload.” Another pointed to the company’s hubris, calling it “massively overconfident” with “no regard for safety.” That begs the question, writes one respondent: “How much longer will Tesla be afloat?”

“It is the future,” he adds, “but change is necessary.”

How potent is Musk’s vision? He is the only leader with two companies in Vault’s “Most Prestigious Internships” this year. His SpaceX enterprise debuts in the ranking at #9, the highest debut of any company in the ranking’s history. From the outside looking in, it is the place to be, with one intern joking, “I’d pay money to intern SpaceX.” However, word is getting out among interns that SpaceX drawbacks similar to Tesla. Notably, intern pay is low and the demands are “grueling.”

Go to next page to see Vault’s 50 Most Prestigious Internships

Elon Musk’s work continues to captivate MBAs

“INCREDIBLY NICE AND INSANELY SMART”

Actual SpaceX interns don’t necessarily disagree. One observed that interns were occasionally “thrown in before being taught how to swim.” Another listed a “lack of transparency and communication,” where it was “very common” to learn that another department has completed a task that they had just been assigned. And then there is the very real stress of working in a complex industry with ever-changing demands that operates at warp speed.

“The cons of SpaceX is stress due to very challenging projects with demanding deadlines that can require working long hours,” writes one intern. “This can take a toll on individuals but also forces you to learn and grow as an individual quickly in a way you would not be able to at a less challenging internship.”

For many, the tradeoff was more than worth it. “The culture at SpaceX is amazing; there is nothing else like it,” argues one SpaceX intern. “The jobs are challenging and constantly changing. I learn multiple new things every day. The people are all incredibly passionate and intelligent.”

Like Google, SpaceX’s biggest asset is its mission itself, which offers a larger meaning than collecting a paycheck or advancing one’s career. Here, says one SpaceX intern, they are treated as an integral part of the organization. “They give you immense ownership over projects and the ability to make big impact on the company – you are basically treated as a full time employee and respected as much. The people hear are incredibly nice and insanely smart.”

SPOTIFY AND HULU GAIN THE BIGGEST GROUND IN PRESTIGE

Aside from SpaceX’s splashy entrance at #9, Vault’s prestige ranking remained pretty stable among top 10 firms, with Google, Apple, Amazon, JPMorgan, and Walt Disney all holding the same spots as the previous year. In the top 20, Spotify made the biggest move, rocketing up 15 places to #20. In the process, Spotify beat out the likes of Coca-Cola, McKinsey, Procter & Gamble, and Bank of America. What was the firm’s appeal? According to surveys, the product resonated with interns, who described it as “industry-defining.” “Everyone uses their product,” writes one survey respondent.

PepsiCo volunteers at a Feed the Children event.

The same could be said for Hulu, which made a similar leap going from 48th to 35th. However, it wasn’t just “cool” tech firms whose surging popularity and free-wheeling cultures resonated with this year’s survey respondents. Take PepsiCo, a traditional food and beverage conglomerate. It rose nine spots to 40th. The same could be said for BlackRock and Adidas North America, long-standing financial and footwear firms that climbed eight and six places respectively.

However, there were seemingly more losers than winners in this year’s prestige rankings. Notably, professional services firm took a nosedive in 2019, headed by KPMG and PwC, which lost 18 and 17 spots respectively. General Electric and Starbucks, both powerhouses at the turn of the century, each lost seven spots this year. At the same time, a handful of tech firms lost ground, including Hewlett Packard (-9), Oracle (-8), and Samsung (-8).

“IT’S A BIG DEAL TO WORK HERE”

They weren’t alone. Since Vault’s inaugural prestige ranking in 2016, the consulting industry has experienced the biggest drop in interest from interns. Back then, McKinsey, the Boston Consulting Group, and Bain & Company all ranked in the top 20 (11th, 14th, and 18th). Fast forward to the 2019 ranking and those numbers have plummeted to 23rd, 19th, and 39th respectively. Intern enthusiasm for banking has also faded…to a lesser extent. Case in point: Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, whose rankings slipped from 3rd to 6th and 5th to 8th respectively. Twitter is another hot property whose shine has dimmed; in the past four years; its rank has tumbled from 10th to 21st.

What’s more, several industry standards have fallen off interns’ radars entirely, including Exxon Mobil, Adobe, L’Oreal, Southwest Airlines, Whole Foods, and Chevron. By the same token, the 2019 prestige ranking welcomed several new entrants, including Uber Technologies, Paypal Holdings, and Dell (which had previously ranked 36th in 2017).

Just because a company misses Vault’s prestige top 10 doesn’t mean it won’t turn heads on a resume. Exhibit A: The Boston Consulting Group, with survey respondents praising it as a “resume builder” with a “smart workforce” and “high pay, great exit opps, [and] super exclusive.” McKinsey – “the holy grail of consulting internship” – elicited similar responses for its “valuable experience” and “cool culture.” “[It’s] a big deal to work there,” asserts one respondent.

Go to next page to see the Vault 50 Internship Ranking.

 

INFOSYS OFFERS BEST INTERNSHIP ACCORDING TO COMPANY INTERNS

Along with prestige, Vault also measures student internships for quality. Here, the same 13,000 survey respondents evaluated their own internships in five quadrants: quality of life, career development, compensation and benefits, employment prospects, and diversity. Overall, 120 organizations were rated using the same 1-10 scale as the prestige ranking.

This year, the Infosys Limited Instep Internship was rated as the top program according to the interns themselves. According to a statement released by Vault, the InStep program earned its highest marks for access to leadership, diversity, and meaningful work.

“You get to meet a group of very diverse, smart, intellectually curious people,” writes one Infosys intern. “The internship truly gave us a global perspective, and the internship program has seminar sessions called ‘Meet the Leader’ where executives like the CEO, COO, CFO, and founders of Infosys came to speak to us about their experiences. These senior executives were also very accessible by email if we needed anything.”

“Diversity is huge,” adds another intern from Infosys. “Interns come from all different nationalities and backgrounds. And interns have lots of autonomy—they have the freedom to decide how to structure their work.”

TOP NAMES DECLINE TO PARTICIPATE IN INTERNSHIP RANKING

Following Infosys is Kleiner Perkins, a design and engineering firm based in Menlo Park, California on the city’s famed Sand Hill Road. The rest of the top five is dominated by accounting firms: South Carolina’s Elliott Davis, California’s Frank, Rimmerman & Company, and New Jersey’s Wilkin & Guttenplan. Coming in sixth is Evercore, which ranked as the banking internship and the best internship for employment prospects.

Several familiar names also dot Vault’s “50 Best Internships.” Bain & Company, for one, ranked 39th, finishing 4th overall for career prospects. AT&T and William Blair finished 25th and 29th respectively – with Accenture, PwC, and KPMG also making the list. That said, the ranking is hobbled by the companies that declined to participate in the survey. These names include the likes of Google, Apple, Microsoft Amazon, McKinsey, the Boston Consulting Group, Procter & Game, and Coca-Cola. As a result, the ranking of many firms on the list are likely artificially inflated. Still, size and prestige don’t necessarily equate to excellence in internships. Goldman Sachs, for example, received a cumulative score of 8.567, 8th-best among investment banks and .41 of a point lower than General Dynamics at 50th. 3M, another household name, also failed to crack the top 50 with an 8.742 average score.

Along with rating their internships and prospective employers, the Vault survey respondents also shared some insights on the process of landing an internship. Notably, nearly 60% of the sample found their internship through campus campus, with 11.4% coming from referrals and 10.6% from company websites. In choosing internship, pay was the primary factor in decision-making, followed by location, career advancement, and the odds of a full-time offer. Those odds weren’t particularly promising, with just 50% of internships producing a full-time job offer.

Here are the top firms rank in Vault’s internship ranking in various career and industry sectors.

Best Internship for Quality of Life: Nickelodeon Animation Studio Nickternship Program

Best Internship for Employment Prospects: Evercore Advisory Summer Analyst and Summer Associate Program 

Best Internship for Compensation & Benefits: Elliott Davis ENVISION Summer Internship Experience 

Best Internship for Diversity: iHMLA Internship Program

Best Internship for Career Development: College Works Painting Internship 

Best Accounting Internship: Elliott Davis ENVISION Summer Internship Experience

Best Consulting Internship: Infosys Limited InStep

Best Energy Internship: Anadarko Petroleum Corporation Internship Program

Best Financial Services Internship: Kleiner Perkins (KP) Fellows Program

Best Healthcare Internship: Abbott Laboratories Internship Program

Best Investment Banking Internship: Evercore Advisory Summer Analyst and Summer Associate Program

Best Media & Telecommunications Internship: Nickelodeon Animation Studio Nickternship Program

Best Retail & Consumer Products Internship: RAI Internship Program

Best Tech & Engineering Internship: Abbott Laboratories Internship Program

To review the Vault internship data in more detail, click here.

DON’T MISS: THE BEST COMPANIES FOR SUMMER INTERNSHIPS

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