the Informer

Sarah Wilson

Internships should not be taken lightly, and the university’s John Kniering, director of Career Services, wanted to get involved.
A few weeks ago, TIME Magazine quoted John Kniering regarding adults taking internships with no pay and students who are not receiving college credit. Though internships were designed for students to help get a jump-start on a career, now adults are becoming involved with internships for working purposes due to the recession.

The idea of an internship gives students the opportunity to get college credit toward their university or college, or to get paid for working a certain amount of hours.

Over the years, many corporations get unemployed professionals to work for free. These internships allow professionals and students to get the training they need, but this causes a problem throughout many industries.

Systematically, this goes against the Fair Labors Standards Act, which allows someone to get paid minimum wage or receive college credit through the work of an internship.

Because workers are getting laid off, companies want to hire new and improved people looking for a learning experience. Kniering notes, “It can be very tempting if you’re laying off employees to bring in free help and call it an internship.”

These corporations are allowing individuals to work for free in response to losing so many workers. TIME Magazine writer Eve Tahmincioglu asked Kniering to give his input and what he thought about the process involving internships.

His response was to encourage students to continue applying for internships so they can acquire college credit. The federal government, however, enforces giving someone work who might be laid off and allows him or her to pursue an “internship” for free.

“I would actually argue this,” and “it shouldn’t be called an internship [if students don’t get college credit]. This is my definition of academic experience,” explained Kniering. Though Kniering supports the federal government in allowing people who are unemployed to get these jobs, he believes these positions should not be titled an internship.

Rather, an internship should continue to be defined as a student gaining working experiences for college credits or a small payment.

Tahmincioglu wanted to express the ideas of how important internships can be for students who want a better look at what they want to pursue.

“The purpose [of this article] is to address the idea of internships” while showing “the implications of an internship,” said Kniering.

The debate was posed in TIME Magazine, and though it might seem as posing against legal opportunities, the questions are getting answered.

The main question rises when people do not get paid and some wonder if it is legal. Some argue the interns are getting an experience and that is worth the labor and efforts put into the working day.

Others are outraged looking for a different response or a different way to call these jobs internships. Progressively, more and more college students go to internships to enhance their abilities through a particular skill. Students can receive college credit in the hopes of building on their future.

However, these internships still provide opportunities for working professionals to continue to broaden their horizons as well in this time of economic difficulty.

For more information on internship opportunities and other job opportunities Career Services can provide, students can visit its office located in Gengras Student Union room 309 or by calling the office at 860-768-4287.