AI 正在改变大学生寻找暑期实习的方式，也削弱了实习作为职场入门仪式的角色。Katelyn Watterson 回忆自己因暑期实习开启职涯，但如今她从曾经最多管理 8 名实习生，缩减到春季学期只剩 6 名中的 3 名，且今年夏天完全不招人。她指出成本上升、AI 能更快完成原本分派给实习生的工作，使她不得不为了保住生意而收缩。
根据 Drexel University 的年度调查，约 20% 的公司表示今年会少招实习生或干脆不提供实习，这一比例自 ChatGPT 于 2022 年推出后持续上升；同时，计划扩大实习计划的公司只略高于 30%，较前一年虽然回升，但远低于生成式 AI 时代之前。Handshake 的资料显示，自 2022 年以来，每个实习职位的申请中位数已增加 3 倍；另有 1/4 的大三学生在 9 月底前就开始申请夏季职位。
竞争因此急速升温。Georgetown University 的 Vayun Krishna 自 12 月以来估计已投了 70 份实习申请，5 月初只拿到 1 次面试且未成功；Claremont McKenna College 的 Samhita Parupudi 提交了 57 份申请，最后只得到一个在印尼的志工机会。与此同时，学生也在用 AI 反制 AI：Parupudi 用 VMock，Krishna 用 AI 改写求职信，Bezaleel Botumanchi 则用 AI 与 Reddit 研究面试系统。职涯顾问警告，这种自动化申请与筛选正在削弱沟通礼仪与自我认同。
AI is reshaping how college students search for summer internships and eroding the internship as a traditional entry point into work. Katelyn Watterson, who says an internship launched her own career, has already cut back from managing as many as 8 interns to 3 in the spring and none this summer, citing rising costs and AI’s ability to do tasks faster than interns can. In her view, saving the business has become the priority.
According to Drexel University’s annual hiring trends study, roughly 20% of companies say they will hire fewer interns or eliminate internships this year, a share that has risen since ChatGPT launched in 2022. Meanwhile, just over 30% plan to expand internship programs, up from last year but well below the pre-generative-AI period. Handshake says the median number of applications per internship position has tripled since 2022, and one-quarter of juniors now apply for summer jobs by the end of September.
Competition is now intensely numerical. Georgetown University’s Vayun Krishna estimates he has applied to 70 internships since December and had only 1 interview by early May, while Claremont McKenna College’s Samhita Parupudi submitted 57 applications and ended up with only a volunteer role in Indonesia. Students are also using AI to fight back: Parupudi uses VMock, Krishna rewrites cover letters with AI, and Bezaleel Botumanchi uses AI and Reddit to study interview scoring. Career counselors warn that this automation is stripping away basic communication skills and a sense of self.