By Dominic Arenas
As a motivated and bright college student, you decide to spend your afternoon on LinkedIn or Handshake to peruse potential internships. In your hunt, there is one posting that stands out amongst the others. You meet all the criteria for applying: you are over 18, have great communication skills, are proficient in Microsoft Office and thrive in collaborative environments. Right before you click, “Apply Now,” you happen to see in all caps: “THIS IS AN UNPAID INTERNSHIP.”
Do not apply.
Today, it is common for students to intern while pursuing a bachelor’s degree. In order to prepare for the “real world,” college students need internships. Though courses can provide individuals with the proper knowledge and mindset for a professional environment, nothing beats an opportunity to work alongside industry professionals.
Prior to questioning the morality of unpaid internships, let us examine the facts. In the case of Walling v. Portland Terminal Co., the Supreme Court looked to five criteria in deciding whether an internship/work/trainee program was for the intern’s own educational benefit or the advantage of the employer.
The Court decided on five factors that must be met for an unpaid internship to be lawful.
1. The internship, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to training which would be given in an educational environment.
2. The internship experience is for the benefit of the intern.
3. The intern does not displace regular employees, but works under close supervision of existing staff.
4. The intern is not necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the internship.
5. The employer and the intern understand that the intern is not entitled to wages for the time spent in the internship.
During my time as an undergraduate, I’ve had unpaid, stipend and paid internships. Additionally, I have lived off campus for three years. Though living in the city has its perks, the financial burden it creates is intimidating. Rent, wi-fi bills, grocery shopping, Metrocard refills and laundry are just a few expenses that commuters and off-campus students face.
In the fall semester of 2017, I accepted an internship at a digital lifestyle magazine. The company consisted of one Editor in Chief/CEO and seven interns.
In order to keep the company afloat, interns were tasked to work on the backend of the magazine’s website, update social media, represent the brand at PR events and create articles.
For my former co-intern, Alek Vuitapadadorn, it is important that prospective interns understand the opportunities of an unpaid internship. “In my experience as working as an unpaid intern, I’ve learned that it’s important to pinpoint what exactly the opportunities are available before and after,” said Vutipadadorn. “What’s expected from unpaid internships is sometimes outside of the range of unpaid work.”
If a college student is working more than 15 to 20 hours a week for an employer, they should be monetarily compensated. The notion that companies with unpaid internship opportunities are “paying to provide experience” is faulty. If students and/or their parents pay thousands of dollars to take specialized classes in college, these employers offering unpaid internships are disguising free labor and exploiting these harnessed skills.
Dominic Arenas, FCRH ’18, is a digital technologies and emerging media major from San Francisco, California.
