‘LinkedIn harmed my mental health’: KCL students share their struggles landing an internship

As the first half of second semester comes to an end, the pressure on students to find spring and summer internships is starting to pile on.

At this point, the constant reminders to find work experience feels inescapable. Attending a London university, this pressure feels like its amplified ten times.

According to Beyond Academy, London’s internship rate is the highest across the entire UK.  Drawing on LinkedIn data from twelve million students, 22 per cent of KCL graduates did an internship, with LSE around 30 per cent and UCL around 25. This is higher than both Oxford and Cambridge.

Competing for internships can be quite overwhelming. In light of this, The King’s Tab did its own research to find out what impact internship competition is having on KCL students, and here is what they had to say.

‘It makes you stressed that you won’t be able to get a job after university’

Many recent graduates have spoken up about the difficulty they have faced finding jobs after university, and this has increased the pressure on undergrads to get an internship. Students say they are scared for the future, as they fear not finding a grad role. “The process sometimes makes a permanent graduate job seem more daunting”, reported one student.

The majority of students surveyed were in their second year of study, with first years just behind them. Some told The King’s Tab that applications have caused them to fall behind in their studies, neglecting certain modules in order to prepare for things like assessment centres, psychometrics and interviews.

For others, it made them worried about receiving a grade lower than a first, believing anything else is not good enough to get roles.

Students also feel they have lost out on time by applying to internships that have all resulted in rejections: “It’s very disheartening researching a company and wanting to work there because of it, then receiving a rejection”, said another student.

Only 17 per cent of students have received an internship offer

Internship competition is not concentrated in one department either. The King’s Tab had responses from a variety of courses such as history, English, biomedical sciences, culture, media and creative industries, and finance analytics. Despite the variety in degrees, 78 per cent said they felt that internships were very competitive within their course or department.

One student said they had applied for over 100 internships, with others applying to around 30-70. Despite a high volume of applications, only 17 per cent of students surveyed by The King’s Tab had received an offer.

Receiving an offer does not always make students feel better about the application process. A student with an offer reflected that “the whole process should not be this draining.”

‘I just feel tired and stressed and undeserving of anything, because I feel like I haven’t achieved anything’

61 per cent of students surveyed reported that rejections, or lack of responses, often affected how they viewed their abilities or self-worth. 72 per cent said they experienced stress, anxiety, burnout, or self-doubt related to internships.

“I felt like I wasn’t good enough”, said one student, while another admitted: “It makes me feel like a failure and that I won’t be able to achieve my desired career.”

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Seeing their peers success on places like LinkedIn can often impact how students feel about their own abilities. A student told  The King’s Tab they had to take themselves off LinkedIn as it was harming their mental health. Another said that “LinkedIn makes it feel like my peers have it easier to get an internship. I constantly see people talk about how good an internship was for them and it makes me feel bad that I’ve never had one.”

One student said they worry about getting an internship every single day, and comparing themselves to others that have offers made them feel “so inadequate and undeserving of anything.”

It’s not the same for all students, however, as some admitted seeing other people successes gave them “hope”.

All students surveyed believe KCL has somewhat of a competitive culture around internships

72 per cent said that conversations about internships often come up among peers. Some believe this is due to proximity, with KCL being close to offices and people in high positions, as well as the “London hustle culture”. 83 per cent of students believe access to internships among KCL students is unequal.

One reason is because many internships are unpaid: “Some people just can’t afford to do that, the ones that are paid are incredibly competitive.”

As well as this, some students cannot find the time to apply if they have part time jobs along side their studies: “London is expensive a lot of students have to work to get by and applications can take a lot of time, jobs can take away a lot of time other more fortunate students have more time to apply.”

Others suggest background and relations can cause unequal opportunities. Some students aren’t as aware of opportunities as others: “I know people with parents who work in finance are incredibly aware of deadlines and interview prep”, said one student.

“Some may have existing connections with employers depending on their family, and not all departments have equal access or events to connections for internships”, claimed another student.

‘Professors and even students several years older than you don’t realise how much more competitive things are now compared to back then’

KCL students want people to know the impact that competing for internships is having on them. Students feel “replaceable, and like a statistic or a grade”, as well as being mentally drained and having a lower self esteem. Having to do so many applications to achieve even one success, they believe this process is taking time away from other things in their life, such as studying and socialising.

Despite this competitive culture, only 22 per cent of students reported using KCL career services or wellbeing support in regards to internships. There was a mixed reaction to whether students believe KCL provides efficient support/resources to help students find internship/job opportunities.

Many available resources provided by the university were highlighted, such as weekly sessions with the careers teams, CV review sessions, mock interview prep sessions, hosting careers events throughout the year, and tutors informing students of various academic internship opportunities.

However, students feel like the university and employers could be doing more to help them. They suggested creating partnerships with companies, providing more options and spaces, and more dedicated in person time on careers in seminars or lectures, could possibly help relieve the pressure they are currently facing.

LinkedIn has been contacted for comment.

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