I am an advocate of Internships. An internship can provide wonderful experience for graduates and other job seekers. However, this ABC Radio feature highlights the level of exploitation that occurs within these arrangements. With high levels of youth unemployment, many young people are entering into unpaid work arrangements in order to kick-start their careers. Many are finding that the experience is mundane at best, sometimes verging upon exploitative, however, I say Yes to internships!
The message I take from the radio discussion is to take care to ensure that you enter into internships having done your research. Like anything else in life: just like choosing a pair of shoes; a car; university; or a flat – never walk blindly into things. Check the credentials of an employer, request an interview and seek to obtain a written agreement. That way, you know what you’re entering into.
Be well aware that you can expect to be carrying out the most dull and repetitive activities at the beginning of most internships-don’t expect to be running an entire department in your first week! I have dusted shelves and ordered brochures as a Careers Practitioner Intern. My daughter fetched the mail and made coffee as a PR Intern. If you do those jobs efficiently and with a smile, in a week or two you will be trusted with something more interesting. If you’re a sour puss, you’ll be doing the mail run for the duration!
So, during an internship:
- Simply observing a team at work offers insight into the culture of an organisation
- You will pick up on the ‘nitty-gritty’ of what goes on in a workplace
- What you are learning at TAFE or University comes alive in the work setting
- will provide you with transferable skills to add to your resume
- You will begin developing a network of key persons in the industry of your choice
I am able to provide support to individuals who are looking for industry experience and would like to know how to obtain a quality internship. I say Yes to internships, despite the rumblings of discontent from some quarters. There is so much to be gained. At the very least it gives you something to look back and regale your family with, in later years.
Do yourself a favour and say Yes to internships!
Image: Interns – Training or Exploitation? (Fang XiaNuo/ Getty Images )
