Intern Shutdown

As we know, the United States federal government is currently shut down.  But what does this mean for us—the interns that already receive little to no pay?

Yesterday, ABC News explored this topic in further detail in their political blog, “The Note.”  The article explains that interns, specifically those with positions closely tied to the government or federal agencies, are out of work and suffering tremendously.  But why would an intern be any worse off than another government employee?

Under different circumstances, an “involuntary vacation” may seem nice, even desirable.  What intern wouldn’t want some time off to catch up on some homework, hang out with friends and sleep in?  Answer—one that is completing an internship for academic credit.

Usually, an internship requires a certain amount of hours to be completed in order to receive college credit.  In addition, some internship courses oblige students to do professional research while working at their job.  Consequently, many interns in Washington, D.C are facing the very frustrating reality that they may not be able to finish the academic term with enough internship hours.  Essentially, students who are not being paid for their work as an intern, but ARE paying for internship credits through their college or university, are paying a large sum of money to NOT work. 

This is certainly an unfortunate and seemingly unfair consequence of a circumstance completely out of the hands of an intern.  Hopefully, the current political struggles will be solved sooner rather than later, and all interns will be back to work.  Until then, think of this post as a friendly reminder to check in with your internship supervisors at your school.  Make sure all of your paperwork is accurate and that you are up to speed regarding your internship requirements and hours.  You will not be sorry!