Should coffee runs and copying translate into compensation? Unpaid intern and Wesleyan graduate student Alex Footman certainly thinks so.
According to The New York Times, he and dozens of other college students were being conned by execs at Fox Searchlight Productions. The film company, at the time producing the 2010 psychological thriller Black Swan, apparently took “bitch work” to the next level for Footman and his cohorts by bestowing them with tasks that violated the federal labor department’s standards for unpaid internships. Rather than learning the ins and outs of film production and gaining real-world experience in the industry, Searchlight’s interns were dumping garbage, jotting and fetching Quizno’s orders, and making sure that the cast and crew had a steamy cup-o-joe hot and ready every morning.
“But wait,” you say. “Aren’t those just the run-of-the-mill expectations of the lowly intern?” The answer, quite frankly, is no. There seems to be a socially singular vision of the prototypical intern: relentlessly obedient and submissive to authority. I don’t know about you, but I’m no golden retriever.
Put blankly, an internship exists – in my eyes anyway – to serve one main purpose: It should reward, not in coin, but in enlightenment. If I am going to do this whole “mature, financially independent adult” thing in the shockingly near future, I’m at least going to do it with finesse.
Going into my summer as a marketing intern for Variety, I did so with full self-awareness that I did not know a damn thing about marketing. My goal was to broaden my education past the boarders of Carlton Auditorium and gain a new proficiency through a professional setting. Thus far, nine to five has served me well. I’ve been introduced into the whimsical world of business proposals, dabbled in creating media kits for sales pitches, and even offered my opinions on social media marketing to Grey Goose representatives in PR meetings. My boss lady has been less of a superior and more of a sensei in helping me to navigate the marketing sector of the entertainment industry. I have been introduced to a wide, yet manageable array of tasks and tools that I believe will benefit the start of my way-too-soon-to-be career.
And now, grasshoppers, I leave you with some ancient wisdom: Get the most out of your internship. Don’t assume that a request for photocopies is a reason to sue, but don’t spend three months of your time fluffing seat cushions either. If your goal is to learn how to operate a Nespresso machine, you might have a little bit of self-reflection to do. Understand the work you will be doing before you make any agreements. Become familiar with the employer you will be answering to and most of all make sure that you are going to be engaging in something that will encourage your future success. You are there to serve a company, but you are also there to serve your ambitions. There will undoubtedly be daunting office duties, but there will also be endless opportunities. Just make sure that when you sign and date on the dotted line, you know what you’re getting.
Photo courtesy of: thedailybeast.com
