One of my close friends is a producer for a media firm downtown and is really excited about helping me towards a career in media. When I asked her what I steps I should take, her first response was “get an internship.” This is a simple idea and one that’s easy enough to latch on to. The only problem is that most media internships are not paid.

The argument for unpaid internships is that they provide the vital experience necessary in order for someone to break into their industry of choice. In the media especially, having that internship on your resume makes you a more attractive employee because you’ve done this all before. Now you don’t just have that retail or restaurant job, but you have references and contacts in the industry you want to start your career in. The other argument for unpaid internships is that they help you get a foothold in the company and provide you with an opportunity to “try out” working for them. In other words, you might not be paid in money but you are paid in knowledge, networking and experience.

The argument against unpaid internships is that they are exploitative and not quite as beneficial as students are told they are. In fact, according to the Ontario Ministry of Labour, “unpaid internships are generally not legal in Ontario unless part of a recognized academic program.” Those opposed to paid internships believe that students and new graduates take them because we are told that they are required to start our careers when the internships are really just slave labour. This sounds even worse when you look at the companies offering these internships – I’m sure a huge for-profit organization could afford to pay a few interns at minimum wage.

In most cases, these unpaid internships don’t actually guarantee a job. Many of the publications I looked at last summer made it very clear that just because you interned with them doesn’t mean you’ll be working for them afterwards.

Another argument against the unpaid internship is that it is inherently classist. It costs money to work and to live – you need to pay for transportation, rent, food, clothing, etc – so not getting paid to work or live can be difficult. In fact, many people cannot afford to do it. It simply isn’t realistic for many people to go without income for a semester.

Still, the unpaid internship still looks like a requirement for a career in the media. Students who recognize this but either don’t want to take the internship or can’t afford to take it and so they are moving away from it. In a 2011 article from the Globe and Mail, new grad Gillian Carr expressed her concern with this.

Now where does that leave me? It leaves me jealous of my tech-industry or business student friends is where it leaves me – tech-industry internships almost always pay. Take for example the Career Centre’s internship programs – and they are all paid and are for students in programs in technology, science, business, health and the environment.

With that considered, though, I do have this job. I’m a paid Work/Study student getting hands-on experience through the University in my chosen field. Last summer, I was offered a paid position with a magazine in Mississauga (for non-GTA residents, that’s a suburb of Toronto) but turned it down to continue working in this office. Hopefully I’ll have just as much luck finding a paid position this summer as I did last summer. I have experience, I have income and now I just need to hope that it gets me a career.

After graduation, I figure I’ll apply around for paid jobs as much as I can and try to avoid the unpaid internship my friend so adamantly suggests. I have all this experience and I’d hate to take a step down and become an unpaid intern. At the same time, I don’t want to stop working in the industry and would rather take an unpaid position than work in retail again. Luckily, I have enough saved that I could sustain myself over the summer, but I’d really prefer not to spend that money if I don’t have to.

The next few months will be crucial in my career and I maintain high hopes for them. Here’s to hoping I’m able to stick with paid positions!