Early internships! Advantage or anxiety?

In this episode of Round Table, Heyang, Steve, and Yushan discuss the increasing trend of Chinese university students engaging in internships as early as their freshman year. They explore the reasons behind this phenomenon, including the competitive job market, companies seeking to build talent pipelines, and students feeling pressured to stack their resumes. The panel weighs the benefits, such as gaining practical skills and networking opportunities, against the potential drawbacks, like students focusing more on internships than academic learning and the risk of internships being exploitative or not providing meaningful experiences. They also consider the pressure students face to secure multiple internships and the implications for universities and their curricula.