Hailey Heinz’s article (Co-op Complaints 11/2/05) was right on the money.
I spent this past summer paying Northeastern to do an un-paid internship at a local TV station. Being unpaid the internship mandated I receive credit and my co-op advisor said the only way to do this was to receive academic credit from Northeastern which isn’t cheap.
For many majors the current rules of co-op are too rigid and inflexible, putting many students at a disadvantage when it comes to getting real world experience. Most of the internships in journalism and other media fields are short-term and unpaid. Unless you land a spot at the Boston Globe paid co-op positions are hard to come by.
There needs to be exceptions to the six month rule, students shouldn’t be penalized for going outside of the co-op system and seeking out opportunities on their own. -Shannon Barnes Senior Journalism [email protected] [email protected]
