The New York Times article, The Unpaid Intern, Legal or Not has stirred up some controversy about unpaid internships. I found my self thinking of an article I wrote, just months before, about that very same subject, which I will share with you later in this post. The simple fact is we all want to be paid, of course we do, but with scarce job openings a lot of companies are turning towards unpaid interns.

Yes, there are some “BIG BAD” employers out there that misuse unpaid interns. My boss shared the story of her unpaid 40-hour a week internship while she was in college. That is definitely abuse of an unpaid intern, but the 15-hour a week unpaid intern is more than acceptable. Most employees give interns real “career oriented” tasks to perform at their internship. Unfortunately, I think all employers that offer unpaid internships are getting grouped into the BIG BAD category and I don’t think it’s right. Internships offer experience college students would not other wise have, and if all interns demanded to be paid or the law stepped in and made it illegal not to pay then I guarantee there would be a significant drop in the number of internships available. A lot of companies would not be able to afford such an increase. It is definitely something to think about.

Here is my article on unpaid internships. Originally posted in our CR e-newsletter.

Unpaid Internships: Money is Not the Only Value

By Lindsay Elias, public & media relations assistant

Unpaid internships are becoming more frequent due to the down economy. But, internship experience is key when beginning your career. Unpaid internships may not have monetary benefits, but they give students a chance to witness the “real world” workplace and to gain exposure to acceptable workplace conduct, including appropriate dress code, team work and accepting criticism.

One benefit of an unpaid internship is references. Relationships built during the internship can be very valuable later in the student’s job search.

Interns also can network with co-workers and clients. Networking is one of the best ways to land an entry-level job. An estimated 80 percent of jobs are secured through networking.

Unpaid internships also are resume builders. Chances are, students are seeking college credit for their internship experience. However having more than one type of workplace experience during college looks great on a resume.

Unpaid internships also enable interns to “test drive” different job environments or industries. For example, there is corporate, agency and nonprofit sectors of public relations. If an intern discovers a certain job isn’t for them, they can easily move on afterward, with more knowledge about what they do want.

When considering unpaid internships, weigh the pros and cons to see if the potential benefits outweigh the costs. Additionally, remember that some internships are considered illegal.

“Unpaid internships are volunteer positions and must be treated as so,” said Richard Bottner, founder of Intern Bridge. “In this regard, employers must be very flexible with their unpaid interns’ hours and will find that they will be limited in what they can offer their interns in terms of business exposure due to a limit in hours.”

There are many benefits of unpaid internships. Don’t brush off an unpaid internship because it isn’t paid – the more experiences you have before graduation the better.