In many studies, unpaid internships in the social work field have negative impacts on college students, including financial hardships and setbacks. A study found that unpaid internships are most common in the non-profit sector which was about 54.7%, followed by 22.7% government agencies, and 22.5% for-profit companies (Center for Research on College-Workforce Transition). This issue impacts these students in ways where they may not be able to afford basic human essentials such as food, hygiene products, and even a roof over their head. Setbacks for college students may include not being able to pay the cost of tuition, transportation, and essentials such as laptops, textbooks, etc. According to an article, about 500,000 Americans each year work as unpaid interns (Austin, 2024). Not only are there financial barriers that come with unpaid internships for social work students in general, but there are also difficulties for student parents that are negatively impacted by costs like childcare. Students who do have financial means and active support systems around them are disproportionately favored compared to students who cannot afford to work without pay (Hazen, 2024).

New York State has already begun recognizing the financial challenges social work students face during unpaid internships. For example, New York Senate Bill S7894 proposes a paid field work pilot program for Master of Social Work (MSW) students completing required placements (New York State Senate, 2025). Expanding initiatives like this to also include Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) students would help reduce financial barriers and make social work education more accessible.

These are just a few examples of how unpaid internships are a structural barrier in social work education and continue to decrease accessibility for marginalized students and ultimately impact the communities that these future social workers intend to serve.  

The benefits

• Paid internships will provide financial stability for college students and their families to reduce financial toxicity.
• Compared to unpaid internships, paid internships can lead to more job opportunities, better job experience, and can help gain exposure to real world problems and issues.
• Paid internships can lead to more job connections being formed, as well as more career advancement opportunities.  

The Solution

• Reach out to the NYS legislatures to establish a policy that requires social work interns in New York State to be paid.
• Reach out to the Federal student Aid (FSA), college financial aid offices, and the federal work study program to help with part time jobs for undergraduate/graduate students and financial needs. 
• Advocate for CSWE social work education policy to encourage paid internships for social work students. 

How can you help

By advocating for resources and signing this petition, this will help empower future social work students who need help providing for themselves and their families without causing financial strain and reducing the stigma around unpaid internships. Internships are crucial steppingstones towards making a positive impact in communities. 

Sources:

Austin, S. (2024, May 26). 9 vital internship statistics you must know [2025] - marketing scoop. https://www.marketingscoop.com/blog/9-vital-internship-statistics-you-must-know-2024/

Hazen, A. (2024, February 20). For-credit internships can-and should-be paid. Default. https://www.naceweb.org/career-development/internships/for-credit-internships-can-and-should-be-paid

Zhang, J. et al. (2021, January). CCWT: who are the unpaid interns? preliminary findings from ... https://ccwt.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/CCWT_report_data-snapshot-1.pdf