Interns or Idiots
Every semester a bright-eyed college student rises at the break of dawn; ready experience one of the last legal forms of indentured servitude. Pre-1990s the idea of internships was manifested as apprenticeship. Young adults and teens worked alongside professionals in order to master a craft. Post 1990s and nearly 2 million students flock to internships each year in hopes of gaining a competitive edge in the workforce. “More than 62% of the Class of 2017 reported doing an internship at some point during their college years, compared to about 50% in 2008 and 17% in 1992.”
Today about 60% of internships are paid. Students work part-time for a minimum wage salary and invaluable experience. Non-profits make up the bulk of unpaid internships and rely on the loopholes set by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938. The FLSA designed six very loose standards from which internships are supposed to separate themselves from entry -level positions and allowed them to be unpaid.
1. The internship must be similar to training that would be given in an educational environment; 2. The internship must be for the benefit of the intern; 3. The intern does not displace regular employees; 4. The employer derives no immediate advantage from the intern; 5. The intern is not entitled to a job at the end of the internship; and 6. The intern understands that he or she is not entitled to wages
In January of 2018 the Department of Labor updated the FLSA standards to include 8 SUGGESTED requirements in order to allow more unpaid internship work.
There seems to be no middle-ground between students being jigalowed into free labor and students having part-time jobs disguised as internships in order to keep wages low. Some companies have opted to supply college credit in place of wages.
The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) reported that 30% of students who completed an internship during their college career graduated with a job offer. Of that 30% there was only a slim 2% difference in those whom participated in unpaid internships versus paid. Furthermore studies show that employers were 14% more likely to call back applicants with internships experiences listed on their resumes.
In a perfect world, internships would strike gold when balancing of compensation, education and separation from entry- level jobs. As someone who has had three-internships, I can testify to interns being taken advantage of. Companies call in students with qualifiable skills and impressive resumes; but rather than further their skillset, they further own agendas drowning the interns in menial tasks and paperwork. While grunge work is a part of working your way up, the workplaces fail to incorporate the mentorship aspect of an internship. Interns should be sitting in on meetings, asking questions, being introduced to connections and learning lessons about progression in the workplace that are not buried underneath the piles of paperwork. Studies show that internship satisfaction was higher when interns were: compensated, had a reasonable commute and had a good mentor relationship with their boss. A good mentor is one: that leads by example, has a willingness to share knowledge, skills and expertise, takes interest in the mentee, and gives constructive feedback/criticism. Embodying these qualities in addition to remembering that your student is not an employee; is sure to make the experience more rewarding for all parties involved.
Resources:
D’Abate, C., Youndt, M., & Wenzel, K. (2009). Making the Most of an Internship: An Empirical Study of Internship Satisfaction. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 8(4), 527–539. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27759190
Flows, C. (2014, April 22). The Unhappy Rise Of The Millennial Intern. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2014/04/22/the-unhappy-rise-of-the-millennial-intern/# 16e132e11328
Waxman, O. B. (2018, July 25). Intern History: How Internships Replaced Entry-Level Jobs. Retrieved from http://time.com/5342599/history-of-interns-internships/
(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.naceweb.org/about-us/press/2018/trend-is-toward-paid-internships/
