Survey traces unprecedented profile of interns in Brazil

An unprecedented survey by CIEE (Centro Integrado Empresa-Escola), released this Wednesday (10), outlined the profile of interns in Brazil. The survey estimated that only 25% of students over the age of 16 are employed.

Internships are non-employment occupations and, therefore, are not included in official statistics. To carry out this survey, CIEE, in partnership with Tendência Consultoria Integrada, used data from the continuous PNAD to estimate the historical evolution of the number of interns and obtain descriptive information about this group.

We considered students over 16 years old, who attend school, work without a formal contract, for up to six hours a day and have a contract for a maximum of 2 years. Having a job compatible with internship activity was also taken into account.

The study estimated that the number of interns in 2021 was 707,903, about 25% of all students over the age of 16. Of these, 40% were from families from classes D and E, with an income of up to R$ 3,000 per month.

For Mônica Vargas, National Superintendent of Operations and Service at CIEE, the survey shows a window of opportunity for public policies. According to IBGE data, in the first quarter of 2022, the unemployment rate among young people aged 14 to 17 was 35.4%, and among the group aged 18 to 24, 22.6%.

For Mônica, the internship is a way to fight this unemployment. The survey showed that young people aged 20 to 24 occupied almost 50% of the vacancies, followed by the group aged 16 to 19, with around 20%. Altogether, young people aged 25 to 39 occupied about 30% of the vacancies.

Historical data from CIEE itself show that about 54% of interns are hired by employers.

This is the case of Nithael Morales, 24, a resident of Belo Horizonte. In March of that year he graduated in law at UFMG (Federal University of Minas Gerais). Nithael started his internship in 2019, in a public institution and, at the end of the two years of experience, he was hired.

For him, the internship was a help to stay on course. He received a scholarship from the university, but when he began to intern, both of his parents were unemployed and he had a younger sister who also did not work.

The grant was R$ 633, equivalent to R$ 795.74 today, adjusted by the IPCA. According to him, the scholarship was essential for him to be able to buy the books he needed, pay for meals and help around the house.

A previous study carried out by Ipec (Intelligence in Research and Consulting), in partnership with CIEE, showed that 69% of scholarship recipients, in 2021, helped support their families. 9% were solely responsible for the family income. The average grant in the year was R$ 1,023.69, equivalent to R$ 1,180.42 today, adjusted by the IPCA.

For Nithael, the internship was important for him to discover the area of ​​law in which he would like to work, but it was also a time to get to know the company’s environment, the pace of work and make sure that he would be respected in this space.

According to the survey, the area of ​​law was the one that offered the most internships, followed by basic and elementary education, public administration and higher education.

According to Vargas, the internship is also good for companies — this is a way to train the employee, being a less costly source of selection and recruitment for the company than hiring an employee who may not be suitable and needs to be fired.

Nithael agrees. According to him, the internship was a good learning moment, when he felt more comfortable to ask questions and, eventually, make mistakes. It was also a time when he was able to show his interest and the value he could bring to employers.

According to the survey, in 2021, the private sector was responsible for more than 60% of vacancies.

The study also showed gender characteristics. In the historical series, men occupy about 40% of the vacancies.

Regarding race, whites occupy 50%, followed by browns with just under 40%, and blacks with around 10%. The yellow ones and indigenous people almost do not appear.

For Mônica, this aspect reveals a need for diversity policies for interns.

For Humberto Casagrande, general superintendent of CIEE, the internship is a way to balance the deficiencies of education in Brazil and to combat school dropout, but the number of interns is still very small. According to him, public policies that favor this type of occupation are necessary.

Vargas reports that some states already have internship-oriented policies. This is the case of Maranhão, which promotes the Mais Estágios program, in a partnership between state agencies and public and private companies.