The economics of internships

Given the current economy, finding an internship can be difficult enough. But an additional -- perhaps even larger -- problem arises once the internship is found. It is a white elephant no one likes to speak about: the funds students forego by taking such positions.

Junior Neda Pisheva found she simply could not afford to forfeit any money this summer. "The only internships I could find this past summer were unpaid," she said. "It would have been a good experience but I could not afford not to make any money." Pisheva said she believes many students feel this way due to the economic slowdown.

Junior Sarah Hoffman was also dismayed at the prospect of having no income over the summer, but it did not deter her from taking her unpaid position because of the future benefits.

"With the Massachusetts budget shortage this year, this was the first summer the Boston state house did not pay their interns," Hoffman said. "It would have been a welcome perk to the internship."

Internships can be a vital tool towards getting a job after college, as they provide insight and networking opportunities within an industry. Despite the difficulties, it is not necessary to give up making any money to have such an experience.

Marie McCool, the Assistant Director of Internships and Employment Outreach at Career Services, is the University's point person for internships. She handles online searches, internship fairs, and the Winternship program. She knows that economics are important to students. "There are many students who come and talk about the realities of needing to make money," she said.

However, there are many ways students can get around this problem and the University can help. McCool suggested searching for internships during the school year. Some departments offer credit for internships, but other students simply schedule it into their week. McCool says this option works especially well for juniors and seniors, who have "a little bit more flexibility" and can block off a whole day for an internship.

"If you find a place you like and they like you, you've worked for a longer period of time [than summer interns]," McCool said. "You have a fuller view of what the year is like."

Another option for students is to do an internship part time during the summer, leaving time for paid jobs. This is "definitely an option for many students" although it is not ideal.

Some students face a different problem where they can afford to take an unpaid internship, but their business or company requires school credit. Since it is often large companies that require such credit, many students fall under the umbrella of companies requiring credit. Viacom is an example of such a company. McCool says this for-credit requirement is typical within communications, engineering and financial industries.

Tufts does not give credit without taking a class, so students doing internships during the summer face the issue of having to pay as much as $1,300 to take an Ex-College class run by the Communications and Media Studies minor that will allow them to get credit for their internship.

For students who cannot get credit for their internships, Career Services created a program called Academic Transcript Notation as an alternative to getting credit for an internship. Many companies simply want the University to acknowledge their internship program. This notation is a free way for students to have an acknowledgement on their transcript that they had an internship with a particular company, but it will not count towards their graduation requirements.

Tufts also has a few scholarship programs which enable students to take internships during the summer while still earning money. One is given through Career Services with funding through the governmental Diversity Fund. This program gives scholarships or grants to four students of color each summer. "That encompasses a lot more than African American students," McCool said.

Another program, led by the University College of Citizenship and Public Service (UCCPS), is the Active Citizenship Summers Program, which is being reinstituted next summer after a year off. This is a grant given to students who have internships where the goal is to make the world a better place, holding to the ideals of the UCCPS. About 50 grants are given, supplementing the income students would otherwise be earning had they taken a paid summer job.

Even if these options are not helpful for a particular student, it is possible to gain a lot from jobs that do not take place in the business world. Former Dean of the Colleges Charles Inouye has some words of encouragement for downtrodden students who still must still work jobs during the summer as opposed to internships.

"We are all limited by our lack of experience. The more widely and broadly experienced our students are, the better," Inouye said. "It's possible to focus too soon and too tightly on one's vocation, just as it's possible to focus too soon and too tightly on a major."

"I'm more of an advocate about finding one's academic focus early than I am an advocate about finding internships that ramp up to a job someday, he continued."