VASQUEZ: On getting paid

I am so sick of large, rich companies offering unpaid internships.

When a company has the resources, potential and opportunity to give something back to the students working for them, there should be no question as to whether or not they should. Excuse me, but your company is not God’s gift to man. If you offer me a “valuable experience” with no compensation, it is just not worth it for me. If the company I am applying for needs me to relocate, how do they expect me to survive when I will be working full-time, Monday through Friday, for absolutely no pay? Sorry, but in this case, “valuable experience” is not going to buy me groceries and pay the bills.

I can absolutely understand smaller, mom-and-pop type companies not offering paid opportunities, simply because it is not feasible for them. But I refuse to accept the richest companies acting so superior and not giving back to the students who will do just about anything for them.

In reality, it just backfires on those companies. The best, most talented students will go where the money is. By offering help for students through solid internship programs, it makes those companies look helpful, friendly, accessible and open. These are the qualities that their audiences are looking for. Not only are they providing valuable experience to a generation who has the loudest voice in our society, but they are placing themselves in a positive light for their consumers.

There are certain careers that require students to have as much real-life experience outside the classroom as possible. The competition is fierce because these students will all be looking for the best opportunities. The best opportunities involve guarantees of valuable experience in an industry that they are interested in and some sort of compensation. College credit is helpful, but again, if a student is required to relocate and work full-time, that credit is not going to keep them alive.

It is stressful for students that know they need that internship experience, yet are unable to find anything that satisfies their basic needs. After constant rejection and ignorance from the companies that do offer great internship programs, they may end up settling for a random full-time job that does not pay them for sitting in front of a desk answering phones and patching calls through. This is where the internship horror stories always come from.

If a large, well-known company knows it is in a position to offer great opportunities for students that might one day be ruling the industry, there should be nothing to stop them. It is a win-win situation because the student is getting what he or she needs, and the company is placing itself in a favorable light. Its leaders can have bragging rights about how all their interns go on to be so successful because this company taught them everything they needed to know. It is a simple PR move that many companies, for whatever reason, do not take advantage of.

Any little bit helps. If the company allows themselves to be personable and open to discussing with potential interns, that already will start working in their favor. Talent gravitates towards those who offer the shiniest package. When a company makes it difficult to apply, has a dry voice on their website and does not offer any help for students, it turns me off completely. And the worst part is that I cannot do anything about it. I am replaceable. There are other interns who will gladly give them free labor. These companies hold the power. I have to either suck it up or risk my resume in the competition for the paid opportunities. So if you are looking for the best internship programs, be prepared to fight fierce competition for the spots offering the greatest deal.

May the best intern win.

Dany Vasquez is a sophomore in the College of Communication and a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. She can    be reached at vasquezd@bu.edu