College Interns Solving Summer Housing Problems

A recent study released by Vault.com shows that almost 9 out of 10 (86 percent) college graduates reported completing at least one internship. This summer, many students will intern away from home, living in unfamiliar cities across the country. For these college students, securing an internship is only half of the problem; they still need to find housing, roommates, friends, and activities.

“Last summer I had an internship with an ad agency in New York. I couldn’t find any housing when I got there, so I was forced to stay in a hotel all summer, and I still had an hour and a half commute to work,” said Notre Dame senior, Willa Qian.

Interns beginning their summer housing search should consider the following factors:
• Safety of neighborhood
• Short-term lease
• Proximity to work
• Availability of parking
• Proximity to public transportation
• Cleanliness
• Pre-furnished
• Roommates
• Price (including utilities) • Amenities, i.e. laundry, exercise, etc.

Starting this spring, students at over 100 other national universities will have free access to a new online community designed for students with summer internships. InternNation (www.internnation.com) helps connect college students, enabling them to find sublets for their current apartments as well as housing and roommates for this summer.

“InternNation helps students sublet apartments from one another. For example, a student in Seattle could rent a summer apartment from a student in New York, who could rent from a student in Atlanta. It’s a win-win-win situation,” said Fran Larkin, founder of InternNation.

In addition to housing resources, InternNation offers a wealth of information for interns in over 500 cities this summer, such as local classifieds, forums and events. The site lets interns join and organize groups to find others with similar interests and organize events, like a 4th of July picnic for students from a particular school or a summer Ultimate Frisbee league in Boston.

College students can learn more and join InternNation for free at www.internnation.com.