Screening Interns and Shortlisting Interns both are an integral part of the recruitment process, but they are not the same. They are two separate steps that the recruitment team has to work on for a smooth and easier recruitment process, but Let's read on to know what differentiates them:

Screening: It is the first step after the applications for job postings start coming in. The CVs are Reviewed first. Next, the unfit profiles are eliminated out of the incoming bunch and the matching profiles are kept for further rounds. Important to note that all the applications must be checked to see if they have the right degree, skill set and experience to be forwarded to the next round. The candidates are screened usually in the first round of interview, either through phone calls or video calls.

Screening can be done through various other ways. Checking out the candidates’ social media profiles, getting preliminary info from their colleges or any past vocational trainers (in case they have done any vocational training during studies), are a part of this step.

Any part-time jobs or volunteering done by these youngsters, the recruiters can contact those workplaces as well, to get a report in the interns’ past profile. This helps in keeping the good profiles and eliminate the bad ones.

Using ATS helps with quick screening, so invest in a good Application Tracking System. Upon screening candidates, recruiters keep a pool of only relevant candidates to be sent for interviews by the hiring panel.

Shortlisting: Screening is followed by the next important step that is Shortlisting. Here the profiles selected in the screening round are scrutinized on a deeper level. They are generally the ones that seem to be a perfect fit for the open position. This pool of candidates is placed for various rounds of interviews if they fit with the job description and the skill set. The recruiter and the hiring panel look for something more than just the basic information about them.

They dig deep into the candidate history on various levels and accordingly interview them. The ones who respond and interact better, have a clear idea about their career path, are shortlisted for further or final rounds of interview.
It’s important to have a pool of screened candidates to shortlist the best ones because not all can be selected for the job posted.

If the eliminations are done efficiently at initial levels, it becomes easier to get on with rest of the hiring process, because the initial screening saves a lot of time. Screening takes time, but will save a lot of efforts if you want to hire the right candidate.

Most companies club these two steps because they think these are the same, but it's important to understand that they are different and fulfil separate goals. An experienced recruiter will always know how to screen the profiles and forward the shortlisted ones for next round of interviews.

Last but not least, effective screening and shortlisting are crucial for finding and hiring the best interns.
If you follow the many suggestions, you may significantly boost your chances of hiring the highly suitable employees. Always keep in mind that hiring is more art than science. It's important to be able to trust your gut and be willing to go for an out-of-the-box candidate.