Students pay big bucks for internships

WASHINGTON, Aug. 30 (UPI) -- More and more U.S. college students pay placement companies thousands of dollars to land internships, observers say.

Amid rising unemployment and intense job competition, the internship placement business is thriving in the nation's capital and taking off in other cities, The Washington Post reported Monday.

Such programs place about 2,500 of Washington's more than 20,000 interns each year. And an increasing number of the interns are willing to pay thousands for an internship placement, typically including housing and tuition for college courses.

The Washington Center, the largest internship placement program in the nation's capital, has placed about 1,500 interns each of the past three years. The center charges nearly $9,000 per summer internship, which includes housing.

"There has never been a harder time to get hired," Lev Bayer, chief executive of The National Internship Program, told the Post. "There is such a need for internships. We have more students than we can ever deal with."

Students often pay using student loans or other financial aid if they are getting academic credit. Most companies offer scholarships.

The placement programs, many of them non-profits, take in millions of dollars in annual revenue.

The non-profit Washington Center had about $18 million in revenue last fiscal year and its president, Michael B. Smith, earned more than $300,000.

The placement companies typically send employers a list of potential candidates. Some employers pay students a small stipend, but most of the internships are unpaid.

Placement programs say they advocate for students, relying on connections to land them coveted internships, while vetting employers to ensure a good fit -- and not a stint filing or doing clerical work.