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About 25 Western University students are scrambling after JD Power rescinded their summer internship offers just weeks before they were set to join the software company.
Some engineering students said they learned of the decision at the end of March and their remote co-op placements were supposed to start in May. The short notice means students don’t have enough time to find other internships.
“I only have about a month-and-half until the summer starts and most recruiters have already finished recruiting for May so it’s definitely been a struggle to find a placement for co-op,” said Rohan Mandi, a third-year software engineering student.
“I’ve already signed off my lease and I don’t have a place to stay here in London anymore. I was ready to move back [to the GTA] with my parents but now I’m put in a really tough spot.”
JD Power is an American data analytics, software and consumer intelligence company. Its London office, located downtown on Dundas and Talbot Streets, has offered internships to Western engineering and science students since 2005.
In a statement, a company spokesperson said its hiring decisions reflect current and evolving business needs, shifting to artificial intelligence (AI). JD Power said the decision to revoke the offers wasn’t made lightly and it apologizes for the impact on students.
“The engineering and software landscape is shifting significantly — driven by AI, automation, and changes in how we structure and deliver work. As we align our operating model to those realities, the demand for certain entry-level roles has tempered,” Joe LaMuraglia wrote.
“This isn’t a reflection of the quality of candidates from Western or the value of co-op programs broadly, it’s a reflection of where our business is today and the kinds of roles we anticipate needing going forward aligned to our current strategy.”
A Western spokesperson said JD Power told the university they were cancelling the incoming cohort on March 19, a few days before the company informed students directly. The internships are optional so they will not impact students’ grades or graduation prospects.
A tough job market and competition from AI
Youth unemployment soared more than 14 per cent in February along with the loss of 84,000 jobs across the country, according to Statistics Canada. Over half of the losses were categorized as youth jobs, pushing unemployment among young people in Ontario to more than two per cent higher than the rest of the country.
Mandi said he applied for three different positions and interviewed for each one in mid-November. By early December, he received a 16-month paid offer for a software developer position where he could work from home.
While he was surprised at how quickly he got the job, Mandi was excited. He believes internships such as this one are immensely valuable and give students a foot in the door in an already challenging job market.
Rohan Mandi is a third-year software engineering student at Western University. He’s among 25 students who had their summer internships revoked by JD Power, less than two months before they were supposed to start. (Submitted by Rohan Mandi)
“The market is really competitive right now, especially with software engineering and just the whole boost of AI, you’re starting to see a lot more layoffs so it was great to get some experience in the industry,” Mandi said.
“Sixteen months is no short time, right? I think I would have made a really good impact on the company, had some good projects to work on and it would have been a great experience overall.”
Mandi said Western explicitly told students not to pursue other job opportunities if they received an offer. He said JD Power was vague in its reason for revoking the internships, telling students it’s moving in a different direction.
Mandi and his classmates are frustrated the company didn’t tell them about the cancellation sooner so they could make other backup plans, he said.
The university’s student experience team and administration are working one-on-one with the impacted students to provide a variety of supports, including employment readiness strategies, exploring alternative employment opportunities, and mental health resources, it said.
Mandi said he’s not letting the loss crush his spirits. He’s hopeful that he will land a co-op placement in the fall semester.