A company called University of Dreams (oh, the irony) guarantees anyone an unpaid internship placement at the basement bargain price of $7,999. Since I was duped into taking out $40k in loans to attend the three year nightmare also known as law school right before the brink of our country's economic collapse, very little surprises me anymore. I am surprised, however, that colleges and law schools didn't think of this scam first. But I sense that they'll likely get into the act as well when they start noticing desperate students willing to pay a semester's worth of tuition during the summer to work at the school museum or cafeteria.
Back in the good ol' days these unpaid internships were filled by actual full-time workers who received a livable wage and benefits. But honestly, who needs those people anymore when young, college educated students are lining up at the door willing to pay thousands of dollars to work for free with no health insurance or guarantee of a full-time job at the end of the internship? Yes, this really is a dream come true - for universities, corporations, and scam artists like the people who created University of Dreams and the so-called non-profit group The Washington Center. Here is an example of the type of internship you can get at the low price of $8,000:
Take Carmelle Hayes, a junior theater and voice major from Stephens College in Columbia, Mo. The 20-year-old works in her school's costume department and loves being on stage. But her goal is to work in casting.
So Hayes agreed to pay $7,999 to University of Dreams for a casting internship in New York for the summer (she's deciding among three choices) as well as handling her living arrangements.Yep, you read that right. This poor college student just paid University of Dreams $8,000 to spend the summer in a casting internship. College "guidance counselors" tell these kids that it doesn't matter what you major in as long as you're haapppy with what you study. They encourage students to take out a $100k loan to study voice, acting, art, and other majors that will almost certainly land you in the unemployment line in this economy. Voice and art are great things to do as a hobby or as a minor to accompany your pre-med or computer science major, you know, subjects that might lead to one of the few jobs left in America that can pay off those loans. It is sad to see innocent students like Carmelle Hayes duped into paying $8,000 on top of her likely $30k/year college tuition for a casting internship. This is a prime example of why so many students today are unemployed and owe six-figure debt.
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Unpaid internships are sometimes referred to as "the gift economy," by pencil-neck economists - as companies save tons of money each year by not paying their workers.
ReplyDeleteI think a good term for this newer development is the "shit economy." This is an apt description, because the economy is so crappy, people are throwing (borrowed) money to work as an intern.
These "people" from the University of Dreams are a prime argument for bringing back the stockade. Disgusting.
ReplyDeleteWhere are the comments????
ReplyDeleteThe comments section is acting weird right now. Nando and Jadz's comments disappear and reappear at random times. Hopefully blogger will fix the problem soon.
ReplyDeleteUgh. I really, really hope this works out for the theater girl, but she'd be better off saving her money to move to New York after she graduates. All the journalism & arts majors who are already in New York aren't having the easiest time finding work, even with their NYC (unpaid but free) internships and/or work experience. Blimey.
ReplyDeleteWell as much as this is terrible. No one should have to pay an internship but it is not a scam at least. If they took money and did not provide an internship, then it would a scam.
ReplyDeleteIf there was no way to secure this on her own, she did what she felt she had to do. That says more about the economy that it would be impossible to do this without paying money. If she could have got this without paying money, then the 8k is a lazy tax.
Given the fact there are more college students than slots, it would not surprise me that new internship placement firms (University of Dreams) are arising.
Realistically we should go to something more akin to the English system. Everyone can go to college, but there are only a limited number of slots in each field. The choices of determining which field to study are driven by the scores on exams taken only. Well, that's my basic understanding of it. Yeah, it crushes the dreams of quite a few at the front end (the smart kids take the "best" study paths), but that's better than over saturated fields with crushing debt.
Of course their legal job market is a little different because they have a distinction between barristers and solicitors too.
An unpaid internship is not worth $8k, that's why I call it a scam. Just as a TTT law school isn't worth going $200k in debt - that's a scam too. We need to call these bastards for what they are and demand accountability so that our entire generation isn't destroyed by student debt and unemployment. Companies like University of Dreams also makes it more difficult for graduates to find full time jobs because as long as corporations can make a larger profit from hiring people for free, they'll continue to do it even if the economy ever rebounds.
ReplyDeleteThere are still free job listings, it's called Craigslist, which list hundreds of jobs and internships in NYC each day. A college student from MO might not realize that there is a cheaper and easier way to find a summer job or internship, so companies like University of Dreams takes advantage of that. Believe it or not, I've turned down paid internships in the last 10 months. It is still very possible to find internships in this economy, I just never bother to apply to the unpaid ones.
Actually, I know a few law schools that encouraged students to give their work away for free while paying the school at the regular tuition rate for a 3 or 6 credit course (ungraded credit that counts towards graduation). Most of my classmates did that, in fact. The career center encouraged me my first semester to consider doing that and waiting tables so I could pay rent "because the legal experience is invaluable." I chose not to pay up, but comparing the course loads of the third years to participated in that program to those who didn't was shocking.
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anon @ 9:44am: Wow, didn't think of that. The unpaid semester internship is very similar to the University Dreams concept. You're paying the university thousands of dollars to do something you could've done for free by taking the semester off.
ReplyDeleteI know someone participating in a similar "pay for internship" program. Fashion internship (AFTER graduating and being unable to find a job)...in Australia. Yes, she had to pay for her ticket down there, and, unlike U of Dreams, pay her own living expenses, including finding an apartment. What a scam.
ReplyDeleteI've come across University of Dreams before and even though I myself didn't go through it, it does seem like a pretty fair trade off...think about it $8k for housing, meals, transportation (withing the city you're working, not to the actual city) seminars from inspirational people in the business community, college credit, and the possibility of coming back to work for the company you interned with in the future. At the very least these students will be able to have some kind of experience in a field of their interest.
ReplyDeleteThe deal is totally stupid, but I understand the motivation of the hoaxsters. The best marks for any con artist to work are the ones who just got ripped off and are looking for a quick, painless way to get back on their feet. Only someone that desperate pays $8K for an internship.
ReplyDeleteBut I thought ppl already knew about this? It has been going on for awhile now in universities. YOu paid for it through tuition.
ReplyDeleteAt least its called University of Dreams and not University of Reality. Interns know (or should know) this is bullshit. And look at the kids on the site. They're either hopeless losers or little rich kids. Maybe part of the gig is feeling like you have a chance of being a casting job or whatever the hell these people are doing. This really seems like a camp or something.
ReplyDeleteLaw school on the other hand distributes inflated employment stats with false salary numbers. People are going to law school for fun, but to earn a living. Maybe I wouldn't have such a problem with their fraud if they would rename the law schools something like - snowball's chance in hell school, fat chance school, chump's school.
Much of the 8k probably goes toward the "as well as handling her living arrangements."
ReplyDeleteThis is an old story. The New York Times did a story on this last year.
Here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/28/your-money/28interns.html
Title:
Hiring is Rising in One Area: Low Paid Interns
Bon Apettit
Oh Wait,
ReplyDeleteI meant to give this story (though the story in the earlier comment was relevant too)
Here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/09/business/09intern.html?fta=y
Title:
Unpaid Work, but They Pay For the Privilege
"Not that the parents are complaining. Andrew Topel’s parents paid $8,000 this year to a service that helped their son, a junior at the University of Tampa, get a summer job as an assistant at Ford Models, a top agency in New York."
Wanna get into the entertainment industry in the ACTUAL way???? Don't waste your money on this crap.
ReplyDeleteHere's the proper way to do it: know someone. Land an internship on your OWN!!! Write a cover letter, send in a resume and convince someone that you're worth working with. Living in a major area for what you want to do is essential to ensuring a future in whatever company you work for. No company is going to hire you if you live too far away or slack off + expect us to carry you. Tell me why you are more deserving of getting an opportunity than the 20 other intern candidates you're competing against.
I started out by responding to Craig's List ad postings; a lot quicker & you don't have to deal w/some online application service that loses your information. I also contacted people who were in the industry to network; some people were responsive since networking is huge in entertainment.
Personal connections are paramount to this industry. Get some friends & you'll be all set.
Sounds like my company ought to try this but we have ethics & integrity.
They don't guarantee you placement at the end of an internship, but they do guarantee placement in an internship and the $8,000 covers the cost of housing, most meals and transportation at destination location. When I added up the cost of housing, meals and car rental for an under 25 driver in Los Angeles, the $8,000 was a very decent cost for internship guarantee. If the student is in engineering or computer science, the demand is high for companies so students don't need the service but if your major is one that is very competitive like film then this can be beneficial.
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