Traditional employee screening processes are often based on academic performance. However, there can be a dichotomy between academic achievement and employee job performance. This study examined 11 years of records from 171 animal industry internshipsfrom students enrolled in an Associate Science degree programs. Internship employers evaluated employees on thirteen performance criteria using a Likert scale. Correlation analysis was performed between employer evaluation and intern salary; pre-internship cumulative grade point average (GPA), pre-internship practicum GPA and graduation. The GPA at the time of the internship was not different between students who graduated (2.88 + 0.49) compared with students who did not (2.47 + 0.58) so data was combined. The average intern earned minimal wage. Areas scored the lowest by employers were work speed (4.3 + 0.77) and technical knowledge (4.2 + 0.76) while cooperation with co-workers and acceptance by supervisors were identical (4.6 + 0.55). Work qualitywas positively correlated (p < 0.05, r = 0.16) with both GPA and salary. Technical knowledge was also positively correlated (p < 0.01, r = 0.20) with salary. Based on these data, academic indicators may not be the best predictor of employee performance,and students with a higher degree of technical skills may receive higher internship salaries.
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