<p>Unpaid internships might be the way business is heading more and more these days, but it feeds into the idea of privilege in a way that is particularly distasteful. Unless it’s a part of school as a requirement or a part of a course that a student is taking for credit (which are, in my mind, completely valid), it’s my feeling that the only people who can afford to be unpaid interns are those from wealthy enough families that they can be supported during the term of the internship. This precludes folks from getting these positions if they in any way are economically needy-- which is the great majority of, at the very least, young people. More and more real jobs grow out of these internships and the disparity between the haves and the have nots grows ever wider, because the interns come from “have” families in the first place. It reminds me of the high school kids who pay $3000 to travel to, say, Costa Rica, to do community service with the local sea turtles or rain forest. Colleges’ admissions offices are able to cut through that to understand that wealthy kids’ families are the only ones who can pad their students’ r</p>
<p>Skrunch, the legal market is so bad that I understand some law firms are actually CHARGING interns to work at their places for the experience. Supposedly they shadow the lawyers to see what practicing law is all about. I guess that is simply the next level of exploitation.</p>
<p>^^ Which leads me to ask: if the younger generation is getting hammered this way, and starts off life broke, earning nothing, in horrible debt, and with few prospects…</p>
<p>…and if, for most people, their house is their largest asset… </p>
<p>…aren’t you only killing your own generation, in the end? Who is going to buy your expensive houses at the price you paid for them? Who is going to buy up stocks in companies that you’ve invested in, when you want to sell some of your portfolio to pay for retirement? Who is going to step up to the plate to pay extra for Medicare and Social Security as it runs out?</p>
<p>Even if the younger generation wanted to - with what money? Yes, I understand that an individual company doesn’t want to sacrifice itself for an infinitesimal improvement in the next generation’s prospects, but heavens, this is NOT going to turn out well for the Baby Boomers.</p>
<p>^^^^ agree one thousand percent. Reading a book by Harry Dent right now about the coming Financial Crash based on the demographics of what you speak. Saw him speak at a money show and he said he does not know exactly when this is going to happen, only that its more likely than not coming within the next few years. Makes sense. If the generations beneath the Boomers don’t have the numbers or the money to buy our houses, our stocks, etc., how is the economy going to continue growing in the long run?</p>
<p>Foreign buyers. Miami market is now driven by South Americans. West Coast has many Asian buyers. NYC is international. Stocks have no boundaries.</p>
<p>“Quite the society we have become. Unlimited amounts of government and private student loans have fueled tuition increases to astronomical levels, forcing most middle class students to take out large loans to fund their educations at usurious interest rates (compared to the cost of that money to the banks). We then force kids who are burdened by these loans to take jobs for no pay so they can get “experience” and hopefully a future job, despite the fact 50% or so of recent college graduates are either unemployed or employed in jobs not requiring a college degree. And we expect our society to thrive into the future??? Will the last man standing please turn out the lights.”</p>
<p>Just show me were you can get a better unsecured loan with no credit. You are WAY of. Ever hear of writing off bad loans and other costs?? I also doubt working as in intern for a few months will be deciding factorr in anyone’s economic LT success so far as that $3000 or so goes…</p>
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<p>I think that’s likely an urban legend. The real issue in the legal community is that far too many kids are going to law school. The U.S. has too many law schools and anyone with a pulse is going to be accepted somewhere. They end up graduating and haven’t a prayer of ever finding a job in law. Then, they’re saddled with a huge amount of debt. The problem won’t be solved until families make the decision to investigate, realistically, what the cost and benefit are of attending law school. For most, it will be a mistake.</p>
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You know, I’m not certain that foreigners are really begging to buy homes in Pittsburg, PA, Bloomington, IN, Omaha, Nebraska, or other “third rate” cities in large enough numbers to keep our economy afloat. Emphasis on “in large enough numbers”.</p>
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<p>You would think, but perhaps this reveals that many free market types think that the free market should only benefit corporations and their shareholders, not workers, who are mere cannon fodder.</p>
<p>Free market “types” are fine with unpaid internships, as long as the rules are followed. If done right, the training can be worth the time and effort for the intern. </p>
<p>The few times I’ve worked with unpaid interns, they spent most of time being trained, watching and learning and in some cases being able to do the work (with a co-worker). We thought of it as volunteering our time for the intern, not as getting free labor from the intern.</p>
<p>However, I’m afraid in many cases, the rules are simply not being followed.</p>
<p>I’ve actually had some unpaid interns work with me in my small business. They were in the culinary program at the local CC, and internship was required. These kids were actually interning with one of my clients in her store, but she arranged for them to spend a few days with various suppliers: regular and gluten-free bakers, a chocolatier (me), and so on. I put the kids to work with me, and showed them various phases of the process. It was a win-win, and we all had a good time. :)</p>
<p>Actually, I didn’t pay them, but it is possible that they were being paid something by the store owner. I’m not sure. They were definitely eager to work with me, though.</p>
<p>If prices are high in the big coast cities many US people find less costly cities very attractive. I’m moving from high cost Seattle to low cost Virginia. So are many others. Many find PItt. a real gem with great older homes for cheap–it is HOT. For every pot their’s a lid. Not everyone needs LA.</p>
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<p>These are actually the worst possible loans you can get. They are non-dischargeable in Bankruptcy (absent very, very few exceptions), thus are never written off, and they up till now have been given with abandon by companies without any regard to the ability of the student to actually pay the loan back. They have not worried because these loans are guaranteed by the Feds, and Sallie Mae will hound people to their deaths and beyond to get their pound of sand. If they are defaulted on, the government may seize tax refunds, disability payments, even up to 15% of future social security payments. There is some relief, income based repayment programs (at least for government loans not private loans), but if there is a default, the penalties, and interest can quickly double the amount due. Interest rates are also very high. </p>
<p>On the other hand, my business credit loan and credit card debt is unsecured, the rates are much lower, and can be written off in bankruptcy or at least reorganized to a great extent.</p>
<p>Student loans, being so available, have fueled the huge increase in college tuition, especially at the private level where many schools now charge 50K in Tuition alone. Its about time this bubble burst.</p>
<p>And no, people from other countries are not going to invest enough money in the US to keep our economy humming along if the younger generations do not have the money to spend on consumer goods, durable goods and houses. We will be worse off than Japan has been for the last twenty years.</p>
<p>All student loans have allowed people to do is rack up huge amounts of non-dischargeable debts that will never be paid back for oftentimes degrees that will never come close to paying off from a financial point of view.</p>
<p>I suggest you do an internet search to see how devastating these loans to people, who can barely afford to pay for them and put food on their table, let alone afford to pay for consumer goods. And these loans have been assumed by children who have only just learned how to do their own laundry. You really think they understand the consequences of assuming this type of debt?</p>
<p>People can be stupid. Most of the blame is on them. Feel free to fund college any other way you can.Good luck. For most of us at good schools with tiny default rates they were just fine.
Your economic argument is dubious at best. Loans fueled the for profits–not your old line schools.</p>
<p>^^^^^ Sure its easy to blame the children who were simply doing what society has always told them to do, to get a higher education no matter what the cost. But of course that does nothing to solve the problem and the damage being done to the economy as a whole.</p>
<p>You have any source for your argument that the old line schools have not benefited from these loans?</p>