Internship is more like an on-the-job training rather than an employment. Interns can either be high school students, college students, or post graduate individuals. For students, an internship is a way to gain school credits, create a network of contacts, and get the necessary experience in their field of specialty. For employers, internship is a way of providing them with cheap or free labor. It depends on the employers if they offer unpaid or paid internship jobs to their interns.
Internships may be unpaid, partially paid, or it can be a paid internship work. Paid intern jobs are common in law, medical, technology, business, finance and accounting, architecture science, advertising and engineering fields. Unpaid internship can also be found in those fields mentioned above, but they are most common in non-profit organizations like charities.
Both unpaid and paid intern jobs can either be part time or full time. Usually, they are full time during summer and part time during school seasons. Most intern jobs last for about 6-12 weeks depending on the type of work. These unpaid and paid internship positions are available in various industries and settings, such as in non-profit organizations, government departments and private businesses.
In the US, there are two types of internships, the research or dissertation internship and the work experience internship. The research or dissertation internships are common for students who are about to graduate and are just completing their research papers. Just like any internship jobs, this can either be an unpaid or a paid internship work. Research interns do research for a specific company, such as gathering information on what is to be improved in the company to make them more successful or to increase their sales.
On the other hand, the work experience internship is common when the student is on his second or third year of schooling. The student is expected to put into practice what he or she had learned in the classroom. Work internship is the key to learning and enhancing the students' skills and to prepare them for their real job in the future.
Unfortunately, paid intern jobs are becoming scares nowadays due to the current economic crisis that the country is facing. Some companies even require their interns to pay for the internship. But this practice has been criticized and is seen as unethical, considering the fact that payment has to be made in order to work an unpaid job.
The main advantage of a paid internship work is the fact that you are paid for your hard work while you are getting the work experience that you need. Also, you can use the money to supplement your needs such as food, transportation, and rent, however you must not expect that paid internship jobs are high paying jobs.
Other students will just go for the unpaid internship jobs especially if the competition for the paid internship positions is so stiff. Be it an unpaid or a paid intern work, you can still get the experience that you need in order to get the required number of credits. Also, some will just proceed in applying for unpaid intern jobs because they know that if they apply for the paid internship positions, it may take them months before they get hired, which is, of course, not practical especially if graduation day is just around the corner. Additionally, another reason is that there is no available paid intern work for their specific field.
If you are to decide whether to choose between an unpaid and a paid intern work, the answer is that it really depends on your preference. What is important is that you get the work experience that is needed in order to comply with your school or licensing requirement. Even if it is unpaid, just keep in mind that it is only a temporary work and it will only last for several weeks or months.
Where to Find an Internship
It is easy to find internship jobs since companies offer them so that they can minimize on their cost. These companies usually post their vacancies in classified ads of newspapers, in the job boards outside their own company, in online classifieds, or on their own website. Just visit their websites and check the jobs section for any availability.
At InternshipCrossing.com, you are sure to find that paid internship jobs that you have been looking for. Even if the competition for these jobs is stiff, you can still get a job because of the thousands of jobs available. Sign up for a FREE trial today!
