Recently, I graduated from Journalism School, and I know exactly what it feels like not having a choice about being forced to participate in unpaid internships.
Some of my unpaid internships were challenging opportunities and valuable learning experiences, while others were counter-productive; a waste of my time, energy, and money.
On occasions, all I did was walk around newsrooms reading newspapers for the duration. No one seemed to notice or even care that I was there, and if they did, they didn’t seem to be interested in acknowledging my presence.
To me, this defeated the purpose of what an internship is supposed to be about and why companies participate in internship programs.
For instance, a few years ago when I lived in Newcastle, I got a placement down in London. In order to fund the internship, I had to work 5 nights a week at a restaurant. I got off work at midnight Sunday and caught a bus 249 miles down to London to start a shift in a newsroom at 9 that morning. When I arrived, my supervisor told me that there wasn’t any work for me and that I should go home. Needless to say, I became angry and quit on the spot.
Anna, who wrote this post is now a freelance journalist and is looking to write about this issue. If you want to talk to her about your experiences contact her via this email address, or call her on: 07706154283.
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