You've decided to host an intern. You know what tasks await and who will supervise. So you post a listing, and nothing happens. Or even worse: you get applications that don't match at all. The problem is rarely a lack of candidates. It's the listing.
Why Internship Listings Often Fail#
Most internship listings suffer from the same ailments as regular job ads, only worse. Common problems:
- Too vague: "We're looking for a driven person who wants to learn" says nothing about what the intern will actually do
- Too demanding: an internship listing that includes ten technical requirements scares away students who would actually be perfect
- Copied from a job ad: an intern is not a junior employee. Expectations and tone should reflect that
- Missing what students care about: supervision, learning, office culture, and flexibility are rarely mentioned
A good internship listing isn't about selling the company. It's about clearly describing what the intern will get out of the period.
The Structure: What the Listing Should Include#
1. A Headline That Says Something Concrete#
Compare:
| Weak Headline | Strong Headline |
|---|---|
| "Intern wanted" | "LIA placement: Web developer with a focus on React" |
| "We're looking for an intern for the office" | "APL placement in marketing – Malmö" |
| "Internship with us" | "UX design internship – 10 weeks, spring 2026" |
The headline should include internship type, industry/role, and ideally location and period. Students searching will often filter on exactly those terms.
2. About the Company: Brief and Relevant#
Three to four sentences is enough. Describe what you do, your size, and what makes your workplace unique. Focus on what's relevant for an intern, not on your funding rounds or clients (unless that directly affects what the intern will work on).
Good example: "We're a team of 15 building digital tools for Sweden's healthcare system. We work with React, TypeScript, and Go, and we believe people learn best by doing real things, not running tutorials."
3. The Tasks: Concrete and Realistic#
This is the most important part of the listing. Students want to know exactly what they'll be doing, and whether it matches their education.
Describe:
- Three to five main tasks the intern will work on
- Project examples if possible, "You'll contribute to building our new dashboard module" is better than "various development tasks"
- What the intern will learn: connect the tasks to learning outcomes
Avoid listing twenty things. An intern who knows they'll work on three concrete tasks feels more confident than one who faces an endless list where everything seems unclear.
4. Who You're Looking For: Be Honest and Reasonable#
This is where most listings make their biggest mistake. An intern is by definition still in training. The requirements list should reflect that.
Reasonable requirements:
- Currently studying a relevant program (specify which)
- Basic knowledge of [X], what you can reasonably expect the education to have provided
- Curious, self-directed, and willing to learn
Unreasonable requirements:
- "3+ years of experience with [framework]" – no, this is an internship
- "Fluent in four programming languages" – no
- "Experience leading teams" – no
If your requirements list looks like a senior position, you have the wrong target audience. Lower the bar and focus on potential rather than experience.
5. What You Offer: Most People Forget This#
Students don't just choose a workplace, they choose a learning experience. Highlight what you offer:
- Supervision: who supervises and how often do you meet?
- The team: how large is it, what expertise is represented?
- Work environment: office, remote, or hybrid?
- Culture: Friday coffee, hackathons, team lunches?
- Compensation: if you offer it, mention it. It's uncommon and appreciated
- Possibility of employment: if there's a chance the internship leads to a job, say so explicitly
6. Practical Details#
Make it easy for the student to determine if they're eligible:
- Period: start date, end date, number of weeks
- Scope: full-time or part-time?
- Location: city and any remote option
- Internship type: LIA, APL, voluntary?
- How to apply: what should the application include and where should it be sent?
The Tone: Write Like You Talk#
Formal listings using stiff corporate language don't work well for internship positions. Students want to see themselves in the text. Write as you would explain the internship to an acquaintance's child studying a relevant program.
That doesn't mean it should be unprofessional. It means it should be human.
Example of Tone#
Stiff: "The intern is expected to possess sound knowledge of object-oriented programming as well as experience with databases."
Better: "You should know the basics of programming, loops, functions, data types. If you've worked with databases, that's a plus, but not a requirement."
Where Do You Publish the Listing?#
A great listing that nobody sees is useless. Here are the channels that deliver the best results:
- Prakto: a platform that connects students and host companies, with filtering by industry, location, and internship type
- The school's LIA coordinator: send the listing directly to them. They'll forward it to students
- LinkedIn: tag the listing with relevant hashtags and ask employees to share
- Industry forums and Slack groups: many tech communities have channels for internship placements
Timing Matters#
Post the listing at least six to eight weeks before the internship begins. LIA students often search a semester in advance. APL students have shorter lead times but still need time. Posting the listing a week before the start date gets you desperate applicants, not motivated ones.
Checklist: Before You Publish#
Go through this list before the listing goes live:
- The headline mentions internship type, role, and location
- The tasks are concrete (3–5 items)
- The requirements match a student's level, not a junior employee's
- You describe supervision and learning
- Practical details are included (period, location, scope)
- The tone is human and inviting
- It's clear how to apply
- The listing has been published in the right channels, at the right time
The Right Listing Attracts the Right Intern#
A well-crafted internship listing takes 30 minutes to write. It saves weeks of mismatched hiring, misunderstandings, and frustration. And it increases the chance that the student who walks through the door is actually the right person, motivated, prepared, and ready to contribute.
It starts with the listing.
