Unpaid Internships Question Companies’ Morality

By Briana Scalia 

Internships have become both common and essential for the average college student.

According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, 65 percent of the nation’s graduating Class of 2015 participated in at least one internship during their college career, the highest percentage recorded in over 10 years.
While some students apply for these internships out of interest alone, many crave getting experience in the workplace before they graduate.

In short, internships have become integral to the college experience. Not only do they provide experience in one’s future career path, they also offer the chance to network, a crucial skill in today’s competitive job market. While some companies recognize the necessity of internships and accommodate accordingly by offering college aged students some sort of monetary compensation for their work, others seem highly unaware.

Ivanka Trump’s business website published a July blog post about how to live off of an unpaid internship by applying for a separate paying job.

The post was written by two interns currently working at the company, who made suggestions such as “setting a budget for oneself” and “socializing on the cheap.”

The post praises how budgeting can help make one contemplate exactly where her money is going, instead of frivolously spending.
However, by not paying their interns, Trump and her team fail to recognize the hard work and dedication that these college students put into the company as well as the delicate balance a student attempts to strike between balancing a course load with one job, let alone two. Many other companies such as Forbes do offer paid internships to college students and understand the value of their labor.

While some, like Trump, have the luxury of a wealthy family capable of financially supporting themselves through adulthood, the majority of college aged students cannot turn to their family for money regularly. Instead of being sympathetic to the plight of interns, Trump goes so far as to caption the blog post “#nomoneynoproblems.” As expected, an outcry of both students and bystanders shared their dissent through social media, leaving many wondering how Trump’s supposed encouragement of “working women” could seem anything short of hypocritical after this post.

While some could argue unpaid internships provide inherent experiential value, other companies recognize the importance of providing a paid salary for work performed by an intern for their company.. What’s more, studies have shown that paying interns leads to them having more potential job opportunities post-graduation. The National Association of Colleges and Employers has stated interns who are paid are almost twice as likely to get a job offer when they graduate as those who work for college credit alone.

An unfortunate product of unpaid internships is the cycle of privilege, something from which Trump has quite obviously benefitted. Unpaid internships are available to students who can afford them, leaving those who must work for money further disadvantaged.
Internships simply cannot be avoided if a student wants any experience in a work environment, which certainly offers a leg up to said student once they graduate.

However, just because internships have become more important on the college resume does not mean companies should treat their college interns with the disservice of not paying them.

Students now work diligently for interning opportunities, and find the discipline to maintain the hours of said internship while handling the rest of their daily life.

While some companies have recognized these efforts, Trump and her company remain apathetic to the ever present anxiety of students supporting themselves in the real world.

Instead of praising the companies that have evolved with the world and realized that college students should be paid for their disciplined work ethic, society should start to contemplate why companies that have the necessary funds are not taking care of their college interns, and by extent, the nation’s future.

Briana Scalia, FCRH ’20, is a broadcast journalism major from Long Island, New York.