Would you hire an intern in early 30s?

[Anonymous]

Honest q- coming out of graduate program, been applying like mad for postings online (and the few postings recommend by friends/network) for almost 6 months. Nada. I have great/transferable skills but not as much direct experience (think private sector to NPO transition). I just need SOMETHING! I mean I can see why maybe people are put off, I'll possibly be older than the supervisor and will possibly actually have more work experience or saavy than him/her just based on working for a decade. Then again this may not be the case, but I could see how that could be off-putting. At the same time the org would be getting a person who works at an associate level, not as much at the intern level (may require less training, definitely a bit more aware of office subtitles just from experience) for basically free. Free employee! Thoughts?

[Anonymous]

Absolutely. I love interns with solid real life work experience (rather than early 20's kids who just worked at Hollister or A&F for pocket money).

[Anonymous]

I have, and having someone who comes with skills is a great benefit. I've also turned down many potential interns (older and younger) because having an intern is work and my organization has limited capacity to absorb that extra work, even if we're getting work in return. That's a long way of saying, if you get rejections keep trying because it may take some time to find a situation that works for you and works for them. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

I went to grad school for a career change in my late 30s/early 40s and had several internships my last year. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Honestly, it would depend, OP. I've had career changing interns in the past and they often did not take constructive criticism as well as their younger peers and were more resistant or set in their ways.

Some were visibly uncomfortable reporting to me as well as I was around their age, sometimes younger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, it would depend, OP. I've had career changing interns in the past and they often did not take constructive criticism as well as their younger peers and were more resistant or set in their ways.

Some were visibly uncomfortable reporting to me as well as I was around their age, sometimes younger.

Sorry, submitted too soon.

THAT being said, you seem to have a very positive attitude so in your case I would probably hire you if you made it through HR. Here is another key, OP: if you network it becomes much easier to gain internships or employment. I met a young woman recently at a reception and determined that I wanted her as an intern so we completely bypassed the whole HR thing. Great for both of us because I know that HR would not have brought her in for an interview as she lacked the set credentials that they typically seek.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the responses! I'm trying to network, not sure of what to do other than really reach out to classmates but I suppose I could look at going to some events held as well that represent various organizations I am interested in. That's a new task I could look into.


I get the point about an ego being in the way for some later in life interns. That's never really been my cross to bear, I'm more of the person who has to work to instill confidence in myself since its not very natural for me and its been a bumpy road in all of this, that doesn't help.

[Anonymous]

I just went through the process of selecting an intern and age was certainly not a consideration. I actually would have no way of knowing an applicant's age. The person I ultimately picked could easily be the same age or a little older than I am, who knows.

There were really common issues that put people out of the running, so here are just a few things to watch for, since it's probably some other issue with your application:
-some one should have a sense of what you're about within < 7 seconds of scanning your resume. Job titles should relate to what you did, not the official job series you were assigned by HR. So rather than "analyst" or "intern" say "corporate strategy intern" or "economic policy analyst"
-If you're applying for something not related to your previous experience, explain why you're interested and how excited you are about the position in your cover letter. Don't make us guess.
-Stick to one page unless you have 10+ years experience. I didn't print or read beyond the first page.
-Follow all instructions. If they ask for a one page resume, ask you to pick one project to analyze, provide one example of something - don't do 2!!
-Be prepared to discuss any materials you provided in the interview
-Send thank yous. There were two final candidates and one was better prepared for the interview and sent a thank you. I took that to mean he would take the internship seriously even though his experience was less relevant than the person he was competing with. I chose him.

[Anonymous]

Yes, that's how I got my current job. My supervisor and co-workers have told me repeatedly that I was the first intern they had in 6 years and that they were happy that I conducted myself professionally and that I was mature compared to the usual interns they had. Needless to say, I set the bar high for the interns that came after me!

Good luck

[Anonymous]

Yes, depending on the interview. I was in my early 30s when an almost 50 year old was hired deirectly under me, to report to me. She ended up being fabulous. Interested in learning, good work ethic, common sense. In other cases I worked with people older than me who seemed to think it was a bother taking direction from a kid. Either way, the work I got from lmost all of them was a higher quality than the 20 somethings who normally were in those positions.

[Anonymous]

I sure would. For all of the reasons above and then some. The job market is currently rough. Look, where I work, we have had bar card holding lawyers intern with us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, it would depend, OP. I've had career changing interns in the past and they often did not take constructive criticism as well as their younger peers and were more resistant or set in their ways.

Some were visibly uncomfortable reporting to me as well as I was around their age, sometimes younger.

I agree with this PP. I was responsible for hiring/managing interns at a nonprofit (thinktank) while in my 20s and honestly I never wanted to hire an intern who was significantly older/more experienced, mostly because I was concerned about their being so overqualified that they wouldn't get much out of the internship. Some internships are pretty mundane and I would personally feel awkward asking someone with a lot of professional experience to do things like basic admin work. The one time I made an exception, the guy I hired completely blew off the work because he considered it a waste of his time.

That being said, I think your problem may be more related to the job market than your age. It's just tough right now. I had been looking for work (while employed) on and off for a couple years before I found something.