College students head for Wall Street internship at financial institutions such as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase every summer. There is swapping of the lecture halls for trading floor and seminar rooms.

Such internships are harder to get these days. The process starts on year earlier. There are a couple of thousand openings against lacs of applications. The acceptance rate is less than 1 per cent. Even Harvard has an acceptance rate of 3.6 per cent.

The growth of technology platforms results into a surge of applications.

Interns put in long hours of work, virtually burning midnight oil. Interns do not complain. In fact, some enjoy this intensity. Success comes to those who work hard and care more.

It is all worthwhile considering the lucrative remuneration package — $125,000 per annum. Internship fills the entry-level positions at major banks. The acceptance rate for interns stands at 62 per cent in 2023-24. It is the best way to secure a full-time position. Internship is a good way to source manpower.

Despite the advent of AI which automates many traditional tasks — Excel modelling, pitch book formatting, data analysis, organizations prefer the internship route. Of course, these days banks do not need armies of interns since many tasks are being performed by algorithms. Interns spend less time on mechanical tasks. What they learn is how to work under high-pressure environment with deadlines. They also learn to manage client relationships and how to think like bankers. They have to read clients, structure the deals and manage teams. These tasks are not replaceable. Internship is slowly evolving from technical expertise to a rehearsal for leadership roles. It remains as valuable as ever.