GLION INSTITUTE OF HIGHER EDUCATION
All you need to know about student internships
GLION INSTITUTE OF HIGHER EDUCATION
All you need to know about student internships
Frequently asked questions
You are interested in employing interns from Glion and we are delighted to help you to source your future talent! In order to assist you as you plan your recruitment and to provide some important information that you are sure to need moving forward, we have anticipated some of the questions you may have prior to setting off on this exciting journey with us and our students.
What type of internships are Glion students looking for?
Bachelor’s students
Before being able to gain admittance to our bachelor’s degree program, students will be required to complete an Experiential Year. This comprises 6 months of practical, on-campus studies; followed by a practical professional internship of 24 weeks, in an operational role (F&B, Reception, Rooms, etc.).
Once they have fully integrated the bachelor’s degree study program and completed the first two academic semesters, students will complete a 24-week administrative/supervisory/leadership-oriented internship, for example in Sales, Marketing, HR, Finance, Revenue Management, Events etc. At this level, students can explore any hospitality-related business for their internship.
At the end of their academic journey, students will undertake a final semester which will combine an academic piece of writing with an additional professional experience, the minimum length of which is 12 weeks. Since they are not required to return to campus after this, they would also be able to accept a more standard 24-week internship or a full-time entry-level position, the first 12 weeks of which would count for credit in their study program. Again, students can accept internships in the wider hospitality and hospitality-related sectors.
Master's students
Our master’s students complete one 24-week professional internship, which constitutes the final semester of a three-semester study program. This could be at either of the levels mentioned above, depending on the experience, profile and professional goals of each student.
Internships for master’s students can take place in hospitality companies, hospitality-related businesses, and in organizations in many other sectors. Internships are not limited to hotels only.
What is the first step I need to take if I want to hire interns?
The first step is to create your employer profile on our Career Services portal. Once approved, this will enable you to post all your internship offers; receive applications directly from candidates; search for candidates with specific profiles; manage each individual recruitment; and receive and submit the evaluation of every student at the end of the internship.
Do you have any specific guidelines available for using your Career Services portal?
Yes, you have access to our Career Services Portal Guidelines specially created for employers. This valuable document also provides tips on making the most of the portal, such as finding specific student profiles or re-posting your archived offers at a later date. Should you need any additional support in using the portal, please never hesitate to contact us directly by email: career.services@glion.edu.
What happens once our offer or offers have been posted?
Your offer will be visible to the particular group or groups of students for whom it is applicable. Interested candidates will be able to apply to you directly via the system; you will receive their CVs at your specified link: email, your own recruitment site etc. (please refer to our Career Services Portal Guidelines) for details). You can then implement your standard recruitment procedures, directly contacting any candidates of your choice to arrange a first interview, etc.
How long do Glion internships need to be?
At all levels and for all programs, the internship length is set at 24 weeks, with the exception of the final work experience in the Bachelor program, which is set at a minimum of 12 weeks.
What should be the start and end dates for internships?
Students are available to begin internships at two different times in the year. They can start either in July/August; or in February/March. The majority need to finish their internship in time for the start of the following academic semester (September or March). Within this time frame there is a certain amount of flexibility.
Some bachelor’s students need to make up a missed 24-week internship at the end of their studies, in addition to their 12-week final semester requirement, while master’s students always complete their internship at the end of their academic program. This allows a little more flexibility in starting dates, as interns at the end of their study program do not have the constraint of having to return to Glion afterwards. It also means that they could remain in your company, on a permanent contract for example, should the opportunity arise. In addition, instead of doing an internship per se, these students could start immediately in a full-time entry-level position on completion of their last academic semester. In such a case, the first 24 weeks would count then as their internship, and we would validate it accordingly. We would advise you to check with each student individually their different programs and constraints during your interviews with them.
Would we need to provide an internship contract?
It is indispensable for every intern to have an individual internship contract based on the specific dates and conditions arranged with them. This document, also known as an internship agreement or “convention de stage”, can be provided by you or by Glion (we have our own standard version). All contracts must be either in French or in English. If you cannot provide a contract in either of these languages, we would propose that our team prepare for you the English version of the Glion standard document (we can provide our contract in either English or French). Each internship contract is signed by the employer, the student and in most cases Glion (although the latter is not mandatory).
Do we need to pay our intern(s), and if so, how much?
Payment of interns is not mandatory in all countries. You would need to refer to the specific regulations of your country to see what applies. In some countries, a small stipend together with board and lodging may be acceptable instead of full payment. Travel to and from the internship location may or may not also be offered. All factors relating to remuneration will be detailed in the internship contract.
What about insurance?
All our students will have their own personal insurance which covers them while they are on internship.
Can I hire all students from Glion, regardless of nationality?
Our student body is highly international in its composition; not all of our students automatically have the right to work in every country. While all Swiss campus-based students do have the right to work in Switzerland, and the majority of London campus-based students have the right to work in the UK (provided that their specific student study permits cover this) you, as a prospective employer, would need to check with your authorities which nationalities can work in your country, which would require a visa, whether this option is indeed possible for the specific nationalities of the applicants you are interested in hiring. Should a visa be required and possible, it may be either the responsibility of the student or the employer to procure this; in some cases the employer may only have to provide supporting documentation. The Career Services team can of course assist individually with any questions of this nature (please contact us directly on career.services@glion.edu for personal assistance).
What languages do Glion students speak?
The main language of our school is English, and all students are required to be fluent (or as fluent as possible) in this language. Many will speak one, two, three or in some cases several other languages apart from English and their mother tongue. You will find all this information on their individual CVs.
Who will I communicate with at Glion?
The Glion Career Services Department consists of several team-members who act as individual advisors to the different cohorts of students. You will likely deal directly with one or more of the team, and you can always contact that person directly. Alternatively, you can reach us on our generic email career.services@glion.edu and your communication will then be directed to the specific advisor who can best assist you.
What is required of me as an employer during the internship period?
We invite you to provide a welcoming, friendly work atmosphere for the student, and to integrate him or her into your team, respecting all the clauses of the internship agreement or contract. Trainees are with you to learn the tools of their trade as well as how to behave in a professional environment. The more and the better you integrate your interns, the more they will learn, and the more they will be able to contribute to your organization. You may see that your trainee has more potential than you initially envisaged: please do not hesitate to challenge him or her to take on additional tasks, responsibilities, or special projects, all the while providing adequate guidance, support and feedback.
Towards the end of the internship period, you will receive a link from the Career Services portal to complete an online evaluation (one per student), scoring different skills and competencies and giving an overall pass/fail for the internship according to work completed. We would also invite you to provide each of your trainees with a work certificate or reference for his or her future use.
Do you offer any possibilities for face-to-face recruitment, or hold on-campus recruitment events?
Twice per year (Spring and Autumn) we hold our on-campus recruitment & networking events, Glion “Recruitment Days”. We welcome employers to attend with the specific purpose of recruitment (both for internships and entry-level employment). All enrolled students and fresh graduates attend the event – there are no classes held on those days. Should you be interested in participating please contact us on career.events@glion.edu. We would be happy to provide additional information and/or add you to our invitation list.
What should I do if I want to offer more senior roles to alumni?
Any offers for more experienced, or full-time team members can be posted to our wider Glion alumni community via our alumni website. Offers can be sent to the following email: alumni@glion.edu for publication on the alumni platform.
What happens if I have any questions related to a specific intern during the internship period?
You should always contact us directly if you have specific concerns of any nature related to one of our students on internship with you. If you are directly in touch with one of our team, then this should be your go-to contact. Otherwise, please feel free to contact us at all times on career.services@glion.edu and we will re-direct your communication accordingly.
I have another question that you have not answered…!
Contact us directly on careeer.services@glion.edu. We will be happy to answer any other question you may have. We look forward to hearing from you!
