THE ONLY BLACK GUY IN THE OFFICE
What the Unpaid Internship Debate Overlooks — From a Former Unpaid Intern
Yes, they’re basically indentured servitude, but that doesn’t mean we should shame students who pursue them
Update 6/7/22: Level has a new home. You can read this article and other new articles by visiting LEVELMAN.com.
The summer before my senior year in college, I landed an internship in New York City at a company where I’d always wanted to work. I still remember that experience like it was yesterday: subway rides to the office, chopping it up with people whose LinkedIn accounts I’d stalked as a junior, soaking up all the game I could. I was living the dream — aside from the fact that my only compensation was fist bumps and the occasional extra scone from a Starbucks run.
These memories came to mind recently last week after a perennial Twitter topic trended once again: unpaid internships. As always, it spiraled into a heated debate with no middle ground. Some declared unequivocally that all companies should pay interns; others advocated for the nobility of unpaid internships, since the tradition had been pivotal in their own professional journeys. While I’d never glorify students paying dues at their own expense, I…
