Unpaid internships fail to pay off for those leaving university

♦ Graduates who do unpaid internships are worse off than their peers who go straight into work, a study has found.

Research by the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex shows that almost every graduate who does an unpaid internship will be worse off three years later than those who go straight into work.

Former interns face a salary penalty of approximately £3,500, compared with those who went straight into paid work, and £1,500 compared with those who went into further study.

The study examines the career trajectories of tens of thousands of students over a six-year period.

Interns who were educated at private schools or had parents in professional occupations were also worse off, earning on average £2,000 less than their counterparts.

Graduates from comfortable backgrounds were more likely to find the sought-after internships, the study found. Dr Angus Holford, who carried out the study, said the research shows that internships are not necessarily key to a successful career.

He said: “I expect some people will find an internship that enables them to do the job they really want to do and that will have the big labourmarket return but, on average, an internship you take won’t lead directly to a job in the profession you really wanted or the profession you did the internship in.”