The Stresses of Unpaid Internships

Young adults in the workplace cite long hours, unfair compensation and other factors for job dissatisfaction.

By Kallen Fenster

In spring of 2021, for an unpaid internship, Fordham University freshman Ian Blunt spent two months working with local law enforcement representatives to help community engagement, especially those in marginalized communities. He helped build trust in the relationships between the police and their constituents, and yet, did not receive any college credit or recognition for his time. 

With unpaid internships, this is a common problem. Interns get unnoticed, or tossed aside as if they don't matter, even though they are often doing the same amount of work as a paid employee. Many college students and full-time employees consider unpaid internships to be immoral and unfair — two of the many reasons why many believe that unpaid internships should not exist.

When young adults land a major opportunity that can help further their careers they usually seize it. But when it comes in the form of an internship, an unpaid internship to be specific, many young adults soon realize that the opportunity was not worth the work. As the unpaid internship starts to take a toll on the intern’s personal life, a domino effect can happen. 

Via Unsplash

One issue that stems from unpaid internships is poor mental health. According to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health — Canada’s largest mental health teaching hospital — young people between the ages of 15 and 24 are more likely to experience mental illness than any other age group. This age group is made up of mostly students, and the unpaid interns in this group often have to mutlitask by completing school work during their unpaid internship.

The sheer amount of focus, dedication and work that needs to be put forth to succeed in an unpaid internship and excel in school is a lot for young people to handle, especially when they aren’t being paid to do the work. All this work can cause massive amounts of stress and create an environment that young people do not want to be in.

Harvard University sophomore Ayla Lerner, who had an unpaid internship in a law office, says she was treated “unfairly” and found her mental health affected by the unpaid internship. After the internship ended, Lerner says she felt anxiety over spending money. “My full-time internship made it hard for me to feel justified in spending anything,” she says. Lerner adds that the job was “too intense” for an unpaid internship and that she was “mentally exhausted” after working for so long for no pay.

Along with the stress and intensity that young unpaid interns deal with, they also deal with ageism. The Ontario Human Rights Commission defines ageism as, “making assumptions based on labels and attitudes about age.” A common misconception is that ageism can only be targeted toward the elderly, but that is incorrect.

Harvard Business Review associate editor Emma Waldman points out in an article, “Am I Old Enough to Be Taken Seriously,” that many young workers are given fewer opportunities or are looked down upon by older workers, simply because of their age. So while young interns may have to deal with mental health issues because of an unpaid internship, they may also have to deal with a form of discrimination.

Another issue that stems from unpaid internships is financial stress, including Money Anxiety Disorder. Financial journalist Jessica Sier defines Money Anxiety Disorder as “a condition of constant worry and unease about money.” Some young unpaid interns develop this disorder, and since they aren’t compensated, they have to “cut corners” as University of Chicago freshman Emmy Specht did.

“I had to cut these corners in order to maintain the lifestyle I had before my unpaid internship, and as a result (it) caused me to become anxious and cautious in my spending,” Specht says.

While some young adults develop anxiety with their day-to-day finances, others struggle to reach a point where they can save their previously saved earnings. Many unpaid interns are at a natural disadvantage if they don’t have money saved up. If an intern is not in the right financial situation and does not have money saved up, unpaid internships can cause a massive problem, providing only valuable experience instead of a valid source of income.

Because of the financial barrier, a lack of diversity can often be found in many internships in different industries. Some lower- to middle-class college students may not be able to afford to complete an unpaid internship, which means the intern program diversity gets smaller. This creates a massive economic and racial divide in job opportunities for all races, because those that come from a more wealthy background are able to work at these internships and get job opportunities, while those from a less wealthy background are not.

Overall, many young adults who take on unpaid internships find them to be stressful and costly for a variety of reasons. The number of issues that arise from this problem are extremely consequential and can be damaging to future generations. Unpaid internships create anxiety in spending money, lack of diversity in the workplace, mental health issues and more.

The “positives'' that unpaid internships offer simply do not make up for the previous issues mentioned. They can often make it seem as if young people's problems do not matter and that their problems are disregarded because they are receiving “valuable experiences and knowledge.”

Those who are considering working as an unpaid intern may want to take a close look at their financial situations before embarking on their next career move.