Two is Better Than One: Demonstrated Benefits of Multiple Industrial Design Internships

This paper investigates the benefits of industrial design students completing more than one internship during their undergraduate education. While internships are crucial for bridging academic learning with industry experience and improving employment prospects, little attention has been given to the impact of multiple internships, especially in industrial design. The study examines students from the University of Kansas, the University of Kentucky, and Western Michigan University, comparing those who completed one internship with those who completed two or more. It evaluates factors including compensation, internship duration, location, accessibility, and perceived value, focusing on the impact of successive internships on professional development. Findings show a statistically significant increase in hourly pay for second internships, suggesting that prior experience leads to better opportunities. Although mean perceived value for career impact, benefit to future, and benefit to education also increased for students who had more than one internship, only the perceived benefit to future was statistically significant. These results highlight the benefits of completing multiple internships.