As the Internship Search Season is in full swing, I suspect that this
issue is on the minds of lots of list-members right now, so I'm sending my
reply to the whole list -- hope this is helpful!
I'm taking a two-pronged approach to my answer: part 1 is straight from
our "Square One Guide" for employers who are new to the internship game or
those who want to take a closer look at their internship program; part 2
is from research that I've done just now among the internship listings
that we're currently promoting to IU students (again, we'd be glad to add
to our listings with information from your internship program!).
Here goes...
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Part 1: From the "Square One Guide", Internship Opportunities Program
Indiana University-Bloomington
The "Square One Guide" is available by accessing our website at:
http://www.indiana.edu/~career/sogwhy.html
COMPENSATION
The question of whether or not to pay interns has a number of implications
for employers. It may be of some help to consider the following when
determining how to compensate your interns:
* The quality of an intern's experience need not be diminished simply
because an internship is unpaid. However, the quality and number of
available candidates for the hiring organization may be reduced because
financial need prevents some highly qualified students from pursuing
unpaid opportunities.
* In a for-profit organization, it is common for employers to offer a
stipend or hourly wage. The advantage of a stipend is that you can avoid
adding short-term workers to the payroll. However, be sure to determine
and satisfy any federal and state income tax requirements related to
paying interns.
* In some fields like computer science and information systems, paid
internships are the norm because of the specialized skills these
students bring to the hiring organization. Students majoring in these
fields are in demand and may have the luxury of choosing the best offer.
* In the not-for-profit sector, it is more common for internships to be
unpaid. For the most part, students interested in working with
not-for-profit organizations are aware that these may be volunteer
positions.
* In the case of unpaid internships, it is typical for interns to work
part-time so they can earn money through another job.
* Should you choose to use unpaid interns and you are a for-profit
organization, be sure that your intern is considered a trainee under the
Fair Labor Standards Act.
* Given the limited duration of internships, the out-of-pocket costs
associated with compensating interns may produce a strong
return-on-investment and "pay-out" over the long run in the form of
lower recruiting costs and reduced turnover.
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Part 2: My 2 Cents, based on My 20 Minutes of Research
The guidelines above are probably helpful, but they don't really get to
the question asked by Robert Handy, namely: "How much should a museum pay
for an intern?" Unfortunately, there is no set standard and no easy
answer.
Here's what I found out: we are currently listing internship positions at
around 20 institutions from around the country, focused mainly on the
midwest. Of those 20 institutions, only about half offer any pay at all,
and those that offer pay tended to be the larger, national museums and
historical centers. The pay for a summer (10-to-12-week) commitment at
the paying institutions ranges from $800 to $3500. As the above section of
our Employer Guide points out, however, most students seeking internships
in the museum field will probably understand that their experience will
most likely be on a volunteer basis. Again, the issue of compensation will
probably depend on the size of the institution, its location, and other
factors related to the "competitiveness" of the internship and the local
cost of living.
Some institutions provide alternative methods of compensation including
reimbursement of travel expenses, free parking, a meal ticket, housing
arrangements, or other coverage of intern expenditures. This, too, of
course, would depend on the ability of the sponsoring institution to
provide such compensation.
Finally, many students undertake an internship with the goal of receiving
college credit. About a third of the institutions we list mention the
possibility of receiving college credit as a result of their internships.
However, receipt of college credit always depends on the student's
initiative, and most of the listings had a phrase along the lines of
"Interns may earn credit by arrangement with their college or university."
This way, the responsibility is on the student to speak with his or her
academic advisor to set up credit for the internship BEFORE the
internship experience takes place. Some schools will require specific
paperwork from the sponsoring institution and some require the student to
complete a project of some sort in order to grant the student credit.
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I hope this is helpful -- and not too overwhelming! Please feel free to
consult our Square One Guide at http://www.indiana.edu/~career/sogwhy.html
for more information about hiring interns (planning an internship program,
legal issues, recruiting strategies, etc.). And don't hesitate to contact
me with more internship listings -- we'll be glad to pass them along to
our students!
Thanks in advance!
Scott Semester
[log in to unmask]
Internship Opportunities Program
Indiana University-Bloomington
On Tue, 5 Jan 1999, Robert T. Handy wrote:
> How much should a museum pay for an intern?
>
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Scott S. Semester
Internship Opportunities Program
Indiana University-Bloomington
"It's better to light one candle
than to curse the darkness."
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