When the coronavirus pandemic forced college students off campus, they not only lost housing, meal plans and campus health care, but many also lost the internships and jobs they had lined up for the spring and summer.
A recent survey by College Reaction found that 75% of students who secured internships or post-college employment have had them canceled, moved remotely or delayed because of the pandemic. And with more than 22 million Americans filing for unemployment over the past our weeks, 90% of the students said they are concerned about the economy and job market.
Recognizing that students in this group include aspiring financial advisors, XY Planning Network (XYPN), an organization of fee-for-service financial planners, has created a virtual internship program to help impacted financial planning students fulfill internship requirements.
According to a news release from the organization, the virtual internship program will connect derailed college students seeking internships with firm owners in the network’s 1,170-plus advisory community.
XYPN’s virtual internship program was designed as an “internship in a box”, giving XYPN firm owners the ability to gain additional staff capacity quickly, with little friction, to meet their increasing demand, the release said.
“The fact that XYPN advisors already frequently operate location-independent virtual firms makes them uniquely well-suited to quickly implement virtual internship programs for CFP program college students seeking new internship opportunities," XYPN co-founder Michael Kitces said.
Participating advisors will receive training and a framework for executing a productive internship program in a virtual format, including appropriate responsibilities for interns, an onboarding plan and templates to get them into action quickly, the release said.
Participating advisors must commit to offering only paid internships and ensure students from all walks of life have a chance to advance in their careers, the release said.
Students whose internships were canceled due to the pandemic, or who are looking to secure an internship for the first time, can visit www.xyplanningnetwork.com/internship-talent-pool.