Helping BIPOC, Women, and First-Generation Students Maximize the Value of Unpaid Internships

Internships and practicums are a required component of nearly all degree programs in human services and its subfields—and most are unpaid. These unpaid positions often have a disproportionate impact for BIPOC and first-generation students, especially women—many of whom are economically disadvantaged and must work to support themselves and sometimes their families. Increased student activism, non-profit campaigns, and journalistic accounts show student frustration over their unpaid labor. Despite the righteousness of these students’ cause, the reality is that the implementation of an equitable, robust, and sustainable nationwide system of paid internships, in the near-term, is politically impracticable. Given that most human services internships are unpaid, we as faculty have a moral obligation to militate against the harm to our BIPOC, women, and first-generation students. One way to do so is by increasing our emphasis on labor market and job skills beyond those specific to our field. Toward this end, we offer five empirically grounded, equity-enhancing tips to maximize students’ sense of agency and improve their job prospects upon graduation.