In today’s society, adolescents are raised to go to school and then go into the workforce. It’s the lifecycle of our society. It is not acceptable to be treated like a child and provided for forever. We grow up under direction and teaching, and then we “go” have our own lives.
Some people enter the workforce directly after high school, others get certifications and training and then there are some who get higher education — college.
A college degree is necessary for many jobs today. Both employers and young adults understand getting a college degree to be the typical path to having a career.
Historically, people went to college to study interesting topics, widen their expertise, foster personal growth and experience more of the scholarly world. People still go to college for the personal experience, but our society tells us that we need a college degree to get a job.
That’s how the higher education system works. That’s how universities make money and produce employees. They create jobs for their own employees, as well as send their students into the workforce to be employees. That is the lifecycle of careers in our culture.
No matter how career success is defined, it usually involves having a steady income and a job. Most universities market themselves as organizations that prepare students for career success.
The way most universities do this is through education, training, fostering practical skills in classes and preparing students for finding a job. The most optimal way to secure a job is through career fairs and internships.
Internships are another one of these understood requirements in our culture of career hunting.
Finding an internship is difficult enough as it is, but Auburn University complicates the process for some majors more than others.
There are certainly benefits to requiring students to get internships. Since internships help with job placement, it makes college statistics look good and students feel more prepared for entering the workforce.
However, when the requirements feel more like jumping through hoops in a circus act than pursuing and preparing oneself for a career of interest, it is difficult to view an internship requirement as beneficial.
Internships carry financial burdens. It is common for them to be unpaid — especially when there are so many stipulations from the student’s college. If someone has to move for an internship, they will be paying Auburn for the class credit as well as paying for travel and cost of living. They are losing money for the sake of the process.
Some colleges and majors have internships built into their program requirements through credit hours, while others have the requirement listed as a single class credit. Again, these students are technically paying Auburn for this opportunity, and this can become problematic when the internship is unpaid.
Something like a pass/fail credit might be more helpful because students would not have to pay for the internship “class” if they complete it during the summer.
For degrees with internships that take up a full course load, reducing the credits required and including the pass/fail internship requirement would be the corresponding solution.
Internships are a necessary part of getting a job. However, some colleges that don’t require internships still have extremely high job placements. This is largely due to targeted, high-quality career fairs, as well as fostering an environment of creative liberty and personal motivation.
There is no shortage of internships in the world, only a shortage of pathways to them. Auburn needs to focus on guiding more students to advantageous and truly edifying internships.
Instead of creating environments in which students get lost in the weeds of internships, Auburn’s career development objectives would be better directed toward helping students find internships. This would give more personal responsibility and agency to the student, and it would enable people who are driven to excel by their own merit.
Internship requirements can produce unnecessary pressure if they have too many requirements. Getting an internship ought to prepare college students for a career, advance their expertise and contribute to their financial success — not to check fastidious boxes of a degree requirement.
Even though some majors yield degrees that are in higher demand than others, universities can make every student’s experience valuable. Through career fairs with legitimate, high-profile companies and resources for obtaining and succeeding in the world of internships, every student can find their path to a career and be as prepared as possible.
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