Work experience: 'There was a cleaning rota for the unpaid interns'

Internships are a right of passage for many students, and while some companies offer payment and training on placements, many don't. Fashion and media have particularly bad reputations when it comes to working students for long hours and no money – but is the reputation justified?

Here unpaid interns in fashion, media and PR share their stories.

Anonymous PR student at Leeds Metropolitan University, who did a one-month unpaid internship at a PR company

"The worst thing about my internship was the company's 'kitchen angels' plan which was a rota for the work experience people (there were about 12 at any one time) to clean the kitchen, put the pots in the dishwasher and clean up permanent staff's mess.

"Long unpaid internships alienate those who cannot afford to work for free and give those who can the upper hand when it comes to gaining experience and applying for jobs in the future. Companies should actively ensure they are not ignoring candidates who come from poorer backgrounds."

Anonymous intern, completed two weeks at a national magazine

"After doing back-breaking labour at a national women's glossy for two weeks, my month-long placement was terminated the day after my graduation. They sent me an email stating that I wasn't 'serious enough' to skip my graduation – despite working hard for my degree for three years.

"They even had the cheek to demand my expenses back despite my spending an extortionate amount to travel there each day."

Anonymous student, completed an unpaid internship at a fashion website

"My internship was the result of my winning a fashion writing competition. I did learn a few things, but it wasn't much of a prize. I was expected to work extremely long days with no breaks on certain occasions.

"When we covered an event I had to work nine days in a row and at the actual event itself. I know this is to be expected sometimes but with no pay or travel expenses, I couldn't help but feel annoyed. It becomes demoralising and you lack motivation."

Anonymous Bournemouth University student, doing a year-long unpaid PR internship

"It was a hard decision to take the internship, but I really want to work in arts and entertainment and there simply aren't enough paid placements in that field.

"It is really difficult not getting paid. I have enough to cover my travel but only because I made a formal request with the finance department. They were only going to give me £8 per day but that doesn't even cover my zone 1-6 travel card. I have to work weekends at my part-time job to get by.

"Not being paid makes it difficult to feel valued for your work. Even though I really enjoy what I do, it can be demanding and exhausting."


Anonymous second-year English literature and philosophy student at the University of York, completed an unpaid marketing internship and an unpaid internship at a magazine and is now doing a paid internship at an education consultancy company

"At the magazine I produced the majority of the content for the website in the week I was there, often with minimal supervision.

"The more I was treated like a member of the team and assured the work I was doing was valuable, the more incongruous it felt to be performing it for free."

Anonymous film and media with photography graduate, completed two unpaid internships: one with a photographer and another at a film festival

"I interned with a photographer in the holidays in my second year at university. She had me doing everything, and I thought I was learning some really valuable lessons until my internship ended. She had promised to get a cheque out to me in the post but she disappeared off the face of the earth, I never saw the cheque and I can't find her business any more."

Anonymous English literature student at the University of Bristol, completed an unpaid internship with a fashion PR company

"The company I worked for is small and relies very heavily on unpaid interns – they have at least two working for them at all times.

I was taking showroom appointments with fashion editors, creating press files, interviewing prospective interns to take my place, managing the company's social media and I was in charge of sample management which meant chasing up editors to return samples. All of which were jobs that I feel they should have been paying someone to do.

"I was told that my travel expenses would be covered. After the placement I persistently badgered my boss for an expenses form (which she begrudgingly gave me) and filled it out, but I never received the money. While I was there I overheard that a previous intern was still badgering them to pay her expenses when she had left four months ago, so I suppose I should have expected it."

Anonymous law graduate from Exeter University, multimedia journalism MA from University of Sussex, completed two unpaid internships in media

"My second internship was awful. I was desperate to do anything in journalism. One day one of the owners of the company blew up on me and shouted at me in front of the whole office saying I was lazy and unprofessional because I had to leave to go to a doctor's appointment.

"They expected to me do as much work as they did but for no money. I spent months chasing up the expenses I was owed and went to the citizen's advice bureau for help."

(Source: TheGuardian)