It's not as if I haven't interned in the past. As a college graduate, my first foray into the professional world was as an intern in the news department of a local adult contemporary radio station. It was your standard issue internship: early morning, unpaid, and not particularly glamorous. I assisted my supervisor/mentor by phoning local police and fire departments at precisely 5 a.m. to determine if any newsworthy stories had occurred during the wee hours of the morning. I also arranged for election result returns with local school districts. I clipped news of the odd from local papers for potential on-air usage, monitored the Associated Press wire with a vengeance, and performed with a smile any other clerical chores that the rest of the regular, full-time staff refused to touch.
While I'm not altogether certain I'd be willing to intern again as I really need health benefits and a decent enough paycheck to foot the bills, the notion of displaced workers tackling internships at what usually is the mid-level trajectory of their careers isn't too far-fetched. According to Maggie Galehouse's 2009 article in the Houston Chronicle, Here's a Plan B for the Unemployed: Try Internship First (http://www.chron.com/life/article/Here-s-a-Plan-B-for-unemployed-try-internship-1747123.php), an internship may actually be an ideal scenario for laid-off employees who want to explore new career options while keeping their skills fresh and relevant. It's a professional trend which is continuing to grow and is reaching a range of personnel, from the recent college graduate to the seasoned worker. Internships aren't just for displaced employees either. They're also a sensible idea for homemakers or caregivers who've been away from the workplace for awhile or for those who want to test the realistic waters of a supposed dream career.
Laura Casey, scribe for the Chicago Tribune, concurs that mid-career internships can come in handy, especially for displaced workers desperately in need of a new professional direction. In her October 2011 article, Mid-Career Job-Seekers Turn to Internships, Volunteer Positions (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-10-24/business/ct-biz-1024-midcareer-interns-20111024_1_internships-career-change-midcareer-professionals), Casey cites the case of Jagpal Mandaher, an experienced commercial aviator who found himself out of a job when the travel industry slumped shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Mandaher kept his cool, remained practical, and tackled a ten-month paid internship at Sensitel Inc. with a vengeance, eventually landing a full-time position with the firm in their finance department. In the end, the internship proved to be an invaluable experience for Mandaher, who interned in several departments at the Sensitel organization before finding the right professional fit. "I actually learned a lot," he said. "The internship helped me realize I felt more comfortable in a financial analyst role than I would've felt in accounting."
While Mandaher's internship experience proved to be a positive one, there is a downside to interning. While an internship can consist of invaluable, practical experience which may very well give a displaced worker a much-needed inside track to a regular, full-time position, there are no guarantees of permanent employment once the internship concludes. Regrettably, interns are expendable, and for the displaced worker who overextends himself/herself with effort during an internship, it's a gamble which may or may not pay off. No health benefits are offered -- an absolute necessity for some. And in some cases, interning can even jeopardize unemployment benefits. As the Laura Casey article points out, displaced workers receiving unemployment insurance must always be ready, willing, and able to accept traditional employment, so if the internship impedes that availability, it could be an issue. For-profit organizations could also find themselves in hot water for not extending a training wage, an act which could result in having to pay interns minimum wage in compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.
But for those who are willing to take the risk and ready to roll up their sleeves at an internship, it could very well be an ideal short-term solution to their unemployment woes. And it could possibly result in a job offer. It's a risk, but could be a worthwhile one, so it only seems appropriate to quote our friends at the New York State Lottery here by saying, "Hey, you never know."
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