Table Of ContentLies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
LIES, DAMNED LIES &
INTERNSHIPS
THE TRUTH ABOUT GETTING FROM CLASSROOM TO CUBICLE
By Heather R. Huhman
20660 Stevens Creek Blvd., Suite 210
Cupertino, CA 95014
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
Copyright © 2011 Heather R. Huhman
All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher.
Published by Happy About®
20660 Stevens Creek Blvd., Suite 210, Cupertino, CA 95014
http://happyabout.com
First ePublishing: June 2011
ISBN: 978-1-60005-203-3 (1-60005-203-7)
Place of Publication: Silicon Valley, California, USA
Cover Art: Ranilo Cabo ([email protected])
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This book is only available as an eBook only.
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Foreword ................................................................................................................................. 6
Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 8
What is an Internship? ....................................................................................................... 8
Why This Book? Why Now? .......................................................................................... 12
Why Me? ............................................................................................................................ 14
Laws Surrounding Internships ....................................................................................... 14
What You Can Expect .................................................................................................... 15
Chapter 1: Recent Controversies Surrounding Internships ........................................... 16
Unpaid & For-Credit-Only Internships ........................................................................ 16
Pay-to-Play Internships ................................................................................................... 25
Interns as Employee Replacements ............................................................................... 27
Hypocrisy & the Fair Labor Standards Act .................................................................. 29
Ross Perlin’s Intern Nation ............................................................................................... 29
Chapter 2: The Importance of Internships ...................................................................... 32
Chapter 3: Characteristics of a Good Internship Program ............................................ 38
Chapter 4: How to Create an Internship Program .......................................................... 43
Step 1: Things to Consider ............................................................................................. 43
Step 2: Setting Goals ........................................................................................................ 45
Step 3: Writing a Plan & Program Design .................................................................... 46
Step 4: Recruitment.......................................................................................................... 47
Step 5: Management......................................................................................................... 49
Step 6: Providing Feedback & Evaluating Your Intern ............................................. 50
Step 7: Evaluating Your Program & Making Necessary Changes ............................ 52
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
Chapter 5: Current Problems & Possible Solutions ........................................................ 54
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) & Compensation .................................................. 54
Protection for Interns ...................................................................................................... 56
Regulation of Good versus Bad Internship Programs ............................................... 56
Interns Replacing Regular Employees .......................................................................... 57
Chapter 6: When Internships Go Bad .............................................................................. 60
Chapter 7: Interns: How to Turn Your Internship into a Full-Time Position ............ 69
Chapter 8: Employers: How to Turn Your Interns into Full-Time Employees ......... 74
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 77
About the Author ................................................................................................................. 80
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
FOREWORD
What happened to internships, in their purest form, representing the opportunity for
experiential education?
When did we begin openly debating unpaid versus paid internships – caring only
about the “paid” issue, with hardly a mention of the quality of the experience?
How did we let the poor economy dictate – even dilute – our expectations of the
internship as a whole?
In the old days of labor unions and skilled craftsmanship, there was a clear ascension
through the ranks of the employable: emerging talent would serve as an apprentice
under a master-craftsman turned mentor, thoroughly developing a specific trade or
skill. Today, that process is completed – for many – through internships.
Instead of fostering a positive entrance into the workforce, we have allowed a sixty-
five-year-old policy,1 a labor law that doesn’t even mention the word “intern,” and
results of unfortunate choices made by interns themselves to create a firestorm of
controversy, false prophets, and used-car-salesman techniques surrounding
internships.
Our government (“see no evil”), our higher education system (“hear no evil”), and
the worst of them all to some, corporate America (the antithesis of “do no evil”) are
the proverbial Three Wise Monkeys. They simply deal with impropriety and inequity
by feigning ignorance and refusing to acknowledge the issue in a meaningful way.
This “blind eye” policy allows less ethical people to expect interns to work forty,
fifty, sixty hours a week with no pay. Others are emboldened to speak of “intern
profits” in a get-rich-quick mentality with zero fear of consequence. Still more, in an
attempt to fix a system that is clearly broken, turn to the written word; in the past
year alone, entire novels, dozens of op-eds, and thousands of blog posts have
appeared – all on the subject of “fair” internships and the “exploitation” of interns.
1 "elaws - Fair Labor Standards Act Advisor," United States Department of Labor, accessed May 21, 2011,
http://www.dol.gov/elaws/esa/flsa/docs/trainees.asp.
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
At first glance Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth about Getting from Classroom to
Cubicle appears to be yet another entry into the written word category, but it seeks to
calm the controversy surrounding internships. Heather Huhman – a genuine and
well-respected professional firmly entrenched in the internship and entry-level job
industry – emphasizes real suggestions to improve the situation. Most importantly,
her solutions – aimed at intern candidates, mentors, employers, nonprofits, career
centers, higher education, and our government (specifically, The Department of
Labor) – are relatively simple to implement and would make all parties involved
accountable for their actions and decisions.
If nothing else, this work – regardless of the lack of effort by the Three Wise
Monkeys – will make you think. How important are high-quality, mentor-based
internships to education and our economy? As an intern, should you really allow a
company to use you as free labor? As an employer, is it right to exploit young talent
to save a few dollars? What can you do personally to provide mentorship to a young
professional instead of contributing to even the perception of exploitation?
I encourage you to think creatively as you read, then to offer and implement your
own solutions. Resolve to make the internship experience a positive introduction to
the workforce for our future workers, leaders, and entrepreneurs.
Mark Babbitt, CEO of YouTern
A passionate supporter of Gen Y talent, YouTern CEO Mark Babbitt is a serial entrepreneur
and mentor. Mark has been quoted in Forbes, Mashable, ReadWriteWeb, and
Under30CEO.com regarding internships, emerging talent and the current job market. He was
recently honored as one of GenJuice’s “Top 100 Most Desirable Mentors”2 list.
2 "The Top 100 Most Desirable Mentors List," GenJuice, accessed June 1, 2011,
http://tinyurl.com/3oen7jk, www.genjuice.com/community/the-top-100-most-desirable-mentors-list/page/6/.
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
INTRODUCTION
Spoiler alert: I’m an internship advocate. Perhaps more importantly, I’m an intern
advocate.
I’ve dedicated my life (and in some ways, my career) to helping young professionals
find, land, and succeed in their first jobs out of college – and internships play a big
role in this process.
Now, just because I’m an advocate doesn’t mean I don’t see problems with the
system. Plenty of important issues exist and will be discussed in depth in this book.
It’s safe to say there’s no such thing as “perfect”; our current internship process is
far from ideal – and we need to work together to do better for our future leaders.
What is an Internship?
One common complaint is the lack of an official definition of “internship,” and thus
participants receive extremely varied experiences. Let’s change that, shall we?
The following blog post, “Empower Yourself! Write Your Own Definition of
‘Intern,’”3 was written by Dave Ellis of YouTern, which connects emerging talent
with dynamic start-ups, change oriented nonprofits, and driven entrepreneurial
mentors:
I looked up the definition of “intern” on Dictionary.com.
I was surprised to read the first entry: “To restrict to or confine within prescribed
limits[.]” Then I realized that in this case the meaning referred to captivity
during wartime (i.e., internment).
I read further and found something more along the lines of what I was
3 Dave Ellis, “Empower Yourself! Write Your Own Definition of ‘Intern,’” The Savvy Intern (blog),
May 18, 2011, http://tinyurl.com/3c7av3c,
www.youtern.com/thesavvyintern/index.php/2011/05/18/empower-yourself-write-your-own-definition-of-
%E2%80%9Cintern%E2%80%9D/.
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Lies, Damned Lies & Internships: The Truth About Getting from Classroom to Cubicle
looking for: “A person who works as an apprentice or trainee in an occupation to gain
practical experience.”
When I thought about it further…although those definitions are in very
different contexts, combined they create a single definition befitting of what
many people think of interns:
Intern (v): To restrict to or confine within prescribed limits, a person who works as an
apprentice or trainee in an occupation to gain practical experience.
That combined definition is a good summation of how many
inexperienced internship seekers view internships, and their role as
an intern. They may project that in an internship one is severely limited –
confined by the role’s traditional perception where the skill you’ll improve
best is the speed at which you deliver coffee.
If that is indeed how you think you’ll spend your days as an intern…let’s get
you a new definition.
I challenge you to view your role as an intern as empowered…as
having choices…as being able to get coffee only for yourself!
Let’s look at some common perceptions about internships that fit my
combined definition above, and why those misconceptions need to be
revisited.
I’m Too Young (or Too Old) for an
Internship
Companies realize that emerging talent has a lot to offer. Today’s young
workers are the first generation to grow up immersed in technology, on the
Internet and with social media, for example – important skills to many
businesses. Start looking for internships while still in high school, and
certainly during your freshman year. Don’t wait…your career
competition isn’t!
Think interns can’t have a couple of grey hairs? Workforce veterans are
finding internships a valuable resource to transition into new careers.
Companies are often happy to bring your experience on-board, and often
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