More students paying to snag internships

The economic downturn has not only led to an increase in unpaid internships, but also a new trend of college students paying to get internships.

To earn an internship in the nation’s capital is becoming increasingly difficult, causing more and more students to pay thousands of dollars to seek the help of internship agencies in Washington, D.C.

UNC senior and business major Tyler Roe earned an internship this summer through such an agency — The Fund for American Studies.

The program offers internship packages that include housing and even college credit at Georgetown University, said Joe Starrs, director for the Institute on Political Journalism at The Fund for American Studies.

“We are an academic organization that has a component internship program,” Starrs said.

After receiving applications from students, these organizations use their network to place candidates in appropriate internships.

Roe said he got work experience and educational support through the program.

“I liked being able to go to class at Georgetown and then to the office in the afternoon,” Roe said.

However, placement with these programs comes at a certain price for students.

The Fund for American Studies programs can cost as much as $6,700 to $7,000 depending on the number of classes the student takes at Georgetown along with the internship, Starrs said.

But some students are able to obtain financial aid or scholarships to participate in these programs.

Roe said not only did he receive a scholarship to pay for his internship program, but he was also paid by Visa USA, where he interned.

Another internship program, The Washington Center, is the largest of such agencies. It also provides financial aid to its students.

The Washington Center offers 78 percent of its applicants financial aid or scholarships, said Korenna Cline, media contact for the Washington Center.

Students must meet some requirements, which vary from agency to agency, Starrs said.

The Fund for American Studies requires students to fill out detailed applications and to maintain a minimum 3.0 GPA, he said.

But Gary Miller, assistant director for business-related internships at University Career Services, said in an e-mail that despite the competition, students still have a variety of resources at their fingertips to get help in landing internships.

“Since there are so many routes to finding good internships that do not require paying such high fees, I’m rarely a proponent of them,” Miller said.

“Generally speaking, there are much better and free routes available, even if those routes come with some uncertainty.”

Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.