Paid vs. Unpaid Internships

 

Benton Howie and Carol Horner Chat

 

  Benton:

Last week I was talking to a young sales professional who told me that her boyfriend, a computer science major, turned down an internship with IBM because it was unpaid. When I asked her if he absolutely needed the money, she said no, but that even though he knew it was a great opportunity, he still wanted to be paid.

 

That got me thinking about my opinion of paid vs. unpaid internships. In this very competitive labor market, the student who gains the most practical experience is the one with the most value to a prospective employer. Is it unreasonable to ask students to forgo a 2 or 3 month $12 or $15 an hour job for the chance to gain 2 or 3 months of great practical experience with a top prospective employer?

 

  Carol:

There is no substitute for experience directly related to the field you plan to enter after graduation. In fact, if you take an internship - you've already entered it. You now have experience to put on your resume. If money was not the issue, this student would have been well served to take the internship just for the experience with an employer as big as IBM.

 

In this economy, money may become more of an issue to more people. In that case, internships might be more difficult to accept. Factor in the additional earning power a student has after graduating with the internship on their resume. Was it worth working for free to gain experience which could lead to a higher starting salary or higher level position once landing that first career job?

 

 

  Benton:

You are right. It does depend on whether the student simply cannot afford to take an unpaid internship. However, most internships are unpaid. The number of paid internships will significantly decrease due to the economic downturn. Most companies, who have to lay off full time employees, believe it is unfair to keep paid interns and let regular employees go.

 

However, a case can be made to retain an unpaid internship program since these people are not taking the jobs of paid workers. They are learning experiences tied to the student’s educational program. With fewer jobs available and more people looking for work, the entry level individuals who have the best and most job related experience will be the ones who will get the best jobs. It just makes sense and after hiring tens of thousands of individuals over my career, it is the absolute truth.

 

  Carol:

If a student gets the chance to work with professionals - as an intern or volunteering on a short-term project or community activity - they are making valuable connections to begin building their professional network. For a lot of students, taking a volunteer gig or interning is a big step outside their comfort zone but never discount the possibility that anyone you come in contact with can potentially hire you or recommend you at any time. And in this difficult economic time, a recommendation will get you a job. Otherwise, you are just one of 1000's of resumes! Building and maintaining a good network is top priority.

 

  Benton:

Bottom line: An internship is not a summer job. It is an extension and continuation of a student's educational experience. And it is a chance to build employable credentials and interview for a job after graduation. If money is critical a student should find the best internship they can afford. If money is not critical, a student should find the best internship.

 

  Carol:

I was talking with two college students who gave me their differing views on internships vs. co-ops. One has done 3 terms of co-op work. His friend has done summer internships.

The student doing the internship feels that he got more of a learning experience with an internship. There's a learning plan defined in the beginning and an expectation that the student will be in an observation/educational mode rather than given expectations to produce something in a more "job" like setting. Co-ops are also learning but are thrown into a situation where they have a work assignment. Perhaps because of this, the co-op spends time doing tasks that they are able to ramp up on more immediately and be productive quickly rather than shadowing someone in a passive mode but being exposed to more complex concepts.

So, both are great but different. Internships are more instructional, Co-ops deliver more real-world work experience.

 

  Benton:

In my experience Cooperative Education assignments and Internship assignments are all different. It depends on the company. Many companies use both co-ops and interns interchangeably. In fact, most people don't really understand the difference. Whereas universities often ask (try to require) formal learning plans for interns and, in some cases, co-ops, I suspect that many companies are using these students as supplemental para-professional labor.

 

European universities always require learning plans or objectives for foreign internship (some US universities have adopted this model) which is a big problem and challenge for most US companies. Their work environments just do not lend themselves to an educational learning structure. This can be the kiss of death for internships with many companies simply passing on the intern. They just don't have time to develop and monitor adherence and progress to the requested plan.

Students should view co-op and intern assignments as a chance to jump into their careers. They will be expected to perform work and to contribute to the departments to which they are assigned. How they perform is a measure of whether they will be considered for hire by the company when they graduate.