Comments on: The Difference Between an Internship and Unpaid Labor

By: What an internship should be « Jennifer Larson, Writer at Large

What an internship should be « Jennifer Larson, Writer at Large — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 20:50:05 +0000

[...] 28, 2009 · No Comments Recently, Deborah Ng of Freelance Writing Jobs discussed the difference between an internship and unpaid labor on her website for freelance writers, both current and [...]

By: Keely H.

Keely H. — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:05:05 +0000

Really useful post. I’m about to start grad school and will be hunting for an internship and have bookmarked it. Thank you.

I also wanted to let you know that I read your blog on Google Reader and something has gone horribly wrong with the feed formatting on this post specifically. You can still click through to get the post but there are several inches of strange warnings. Just FYI.

By: Shell

Shell — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 20:02:26 +0000

There’s so many ads these days requesting an ‘intern’ knows the job inside out before even applying! Many of these companies want to take on a professional without offering any form of payment.

Yes, I’ve seen long lists of required skills which are more suited to someone who has been in a career for 10 years let alone six months or less!

By: Unpaid Writing Internships: Are They Scams? : Bizzia - News, information and opinions about the world of business from inside the blogosphere.

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 15:37:48 +0000

[...] Someone emailed me a link to this article about internships, which I had not previously read. It’s a good place to go to continue the [...]

By: Chris

Chris — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:50:09 +0000

Excellent article. The only thing I would add is one more question: Will the Employer Make a Good Reference? Even if an internship doesn’t lead to a full time job, at the very least, you should get a valuable reference or 2 for when you begin applying for work. Joey@Gmail.com writing in on behalf of OnlineContentChurning.com probably isn’t going to make a very valuable reference. I think considering what type of reference an employer will make is a good indicator of how legit the company is and whether they’re worth interning for.

By: Freelance Writing Jobs for April 14, 2009 : Freelance Writing Jobs for Web and Print

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 13:15:19 +0000

[...] you see my post entitled “The Difference Between an Internship and Unpaid Labor“? If not, I recommend you do so. During this time of year so many employers are looking for [...]

By: Kim

Kim — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 16:02:49 +0000

I agree 100% with everything in this article. The biggest part of an internship is gaining experience that you can use in a future paying job.

By: Kathryn

Kathryn — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 12:03:19 +0000

A great place to find TRUE internships is through the local college. There are usually internship opportunities posted on the boards around campus. I’ve had experience working as an intern in a different field and I was given a place to stay, a small stipend and college credit. I did learn a great deal.

When I was sixteen I worked as an apprentice (NOT a paying gig ). After three months of hard labor I was offered one dollar per hour to continue the apprenticeship. I finally began to realize that I was actually free labor and left.

People will take advantage of your desire to get into a business (or in my case be around horses ). Review the job description and if you feel like you will come out better and more prepared to work in your desired field you might want to consider it.

If you will be producing work that you can point future employers towards then you might want to consider the position. If the job seems slimy then it probably isn’t where you want to be.

There are PLENTY of people that will let you write for free! Find someone that will give you something in return.

By: Grace Rodriguez

Grace Rodriguez — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 22:01:04 +0000

This is a great post, for both prospective interns and employers. I agree with Jenn: Too often, employers focus on their needs without considering how the internship should benefit the intern. When creating these opportunities, employers should ask themselves: “What value can I provide for the intern in exchange for their work?” Your eight questions are a good starting point to answer that!

By: Spy vs. Spy: Freelance Writing Code Words » The Life and Times of a Freelance Writer

Sat, 11 Apr 2009 20:31:28 +0000

[...] Internship (Some are true internships, of course, but they should be expressly for college credit and to teach someone the industry, not just to recruit free labor. Edit: The day after I posted this, Deb Ng over at Freelance Writing Jobs wrote a great post about internships vs. unpaid labor.) [...]