Internship rip-off

As the spring semester nears its end, summer internships are about to begin. But if you are thinking of taking internship for credit, think again; because if you do, you’ll have to brace yourself for a bursar bill. That’s right, even though you are going to be off campus and barely using IU’s resources, IU is still going to charge you an arm and a leg. The tuition ranges from $218.53 per credit hour for in-state residents to $671.30 for out-of-state residents. And that is if you are taking the internship for one credit hour. If your internship is more than one credit hour, multiply the amount. This is flat out outrageous.\nYou could, of course, not take the internship for credit. But it’s often not an option; some majors and minors require the completion of an internship for graduation. That means paying a hefty fee.\nBecause I’m doing an internship, I am forgoing the pay of a summer job in hopes that the internship experience will provide me with better job opportunities after graduation. Maybe business students with well-compensated internships can afford to pay for internship credit hours. The same cannot be said for all students.\nI’m a starving political science major, and my internships don’t pay squat. Plus, internships are often located in expensive cities, such as New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C. I can barely come up with money for living expenses, which usually average three to five grand. I can’t afford tuition. And why should I? I won’t even go to class. It’s quite underhanded to squeeze the proverbial juice from student turnips for internships, given the reduced availability of financial aid during the summer. Lower-income students are already at a disadvantage when it comes to summer internships because internships usually pay less than summer jobs. Adding a University fee on top of that further sharpens the economic divide, which, ironically enough, the University is supposed to alleviate. As a result of such pricing, lower-income students are more likely to graduate from college with less career-related experience than their more affluent peers. This has direct effect on their future career advancement and earnings potential.\nDon’t get me wrong. I understand that there are administrative costs associated with processing my internship info and reading my essays and diaries. But it is unfair to price internship credit hours at the same rate as course credit hours. This fact is recognized for graduate students doing a dissertation or research. They only pay $150 per term. Why should undergraduates be treated any differently when they likely use even less of IU’s resources than grads doing a dissertation?\nThis shady pricing discrimination looks suspiciously like an attempt by the University to squeeze more money out of unwitting undergrads and their parents. Most of my friends who did an internship for credit had no idea they would be charged per credit hour until after the fact. This has the complete look and feel of an ethical violation. Way to uphold the standards of social justice, IU!