You should avoid unpaid internships. Here’s how to get paid instead.
A great internship can be a springboard to a first job — perform well enough, and you could blossom into a full-time employee. But not all internships pay. In fact, according to the 2021 National Survey of College Internships, about 60% of college internships are unpaid.
The case against unpaid internships
An unpaid internship can be cost-prohibitive for some college students, especially those coming from low-income households, and/or looking for positions in high-cost-of-living locations like New York City or San Francisco. Unpaid internships create a racial and ethnic gap, with white students more likely to be able to afford unpaid internships than minorities.
Another reason to avoid taking an unpaid internship? It’s common for unpaid interns to get stuck doing grunt work (which, in some circumstances, might even be illegal under the Fair Labor Standards Act) as opposed to substantive work where they can learn valuable professional skills.
Related: How I pitched my own internship — and how you can too
Furthermore, recent research states that college graduates with a paid internship typically receive more job offers and have higher starting salaries than unpaid interns.
And there’s an ethical case to be made against unpaid internships: No one should have to work for free to gain real-world job experience.
Now, it’s time for the good news. Although many internships are unpaid, the majority (about 40%) are paid. Moreover, the average wage for a paid college internship today is a record-high $20.82 per hour. That’s nearly triple the federal minimum wage.
Ready to land a paid internship? Try the following steps.
Whip your resume into shape
Before you start searching for paid internships, make sure your resume is up to date.
Your resume should highlight the core skills that you’ve gained through your college studies, volunteer work and any prior internships. It should also contain relevant keywords, since 75% of hiring professionals today use applicant tracking systems to scan resumes to weed out applicants.
Related: Your resume summary statement is your chance to brag. Here’s how to do it well.
Although you can’t know exactly which keywords a company prioritizes in its system, it’s a good idea to weave in terms that relate to the specific qualities listed in the job posting. For example, if the internship description calls for “social media marketing skills,” be sure to include that phrase on your resume, word for word.
Tap your college’s resources
Take advantage of your university’s alumni network. Use it to find contact information for graduates that are working at companies where you’d like to intern. Reach out to those people, and express your interest in interning with their employer.
Many schools also have career counseling offices that can help you search for paid internships. College career counselors can also proofread your resume to ensure it’s in tip-top shape before you submit internship applications.
In addition, on-campus career fairs can be a great place to meet hiring professionals at companies where you’d like to intern. Many companies use these fairs to recruit talent.
Another strategy: Ask your professors to put you in touch with their past students. These people may be willing to sing your praises to the internship coordinator.
Utilize job boards
Job posting websites like Glassdoor, Indeed, LinkedIn, Monster and ZipRecruiter aren’t just for finding full-time jobs — they also post internship opportunities, with some sites allowing you to filter for paid programs.
There are also websites that are tailored to internships, such as InternMatch, CollegeGrad and Internships.com.
Related: Where do you want to be in 5 years? It’s okay not to know.
For internships in the public sector, go to USAJobs.gov and set the salary dial (under “top filters'') to a minimum of $10 an hour. For internships at nonprofits, check out Idealist.com.
Contact employers directly
Have a particular company you’d like to intern for? Even if it doesn’t have an internship posting online, it’s still worthwhile to reach out to its human resources department to see if the company offers internship opportunities.
One last thing…
Even if a position is marked as “unpaid,” go ahead and inquire about compensation opportunities anyway.
If an internship at your dream employer is unpaid, there’s no harm in inquiring about compensation. The company may have an internship allowance earmarked for low-income college students, or it may be willing to pay you based on your skills, qualifications and chutzpah! (And, at minimum, you’ve put a bug in their ear about the importance of paying workers for their time and effort.)
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