Internships have been traditionally perceived as learning experiences for students in the chosen field. However, they have also come to be required on your resume if you want a good job after college. Because of this, the competition for internships has become hotter than ever. Hot enough to even warrant students paying companies to place them in unpaid internships. Hard to believe, but true.

I came across an article on MSNBC discussing this new trend, you can find it here. What really caught my eye was how much some students would pay just to get an unpaid internship. One company charges from $6500 - $8500 dollars, which I find insanely expensive. Personally, I think this harms the students as they miss out on some valuable experience by not taking part in the process. Also, no matter how hot the competition for internships is right now, I have a hard time believing that these students couldn’t find one on their own. Laziness and a “Money solves everything” attitude are more likely explanations for hiring one of these companies.

What do you think? If you were back in college, would you consider using services such as these? Also, do you think that this damages the student’s job finding skills in the long run? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.