Women less likely to receive pay for college internships

Date:
August 18, 2020
Source:
Binghamton University
Summary:
The odds of women receiving pay for a college internship are 34%
lower than for men, according to new research.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
The odds of women receiving pay for a college internship are 34% lower
than for men, according to new research from Binghamton University,
State University of New York.


==========================================================================
A team of researchers led by Binghamton University Assistant Professor
of Student Affairs Administration John Zilvinskis sought to find out
whether women and other underserved groups were more or less likely
to participate in paid or unpaid internships in college compared with
their peers. They were prompted to examine this issue given that paid internships often lead to higher paying positions post-graduation and
that women continue to earn less than men for the same position despite
their level of education.

Using data from a 2018 experimental itemset of the National Survey of
Student Engagement, the researchers examined the relationship between
student identity and academic major to the outcome of receiving pay for
an internship. Of the 2,410 seniors who participated in internships,
58% of men received pay during their internships, whereas only 35%
of women received pay. After controlling for background and major,
the odds of women receiving pay for their internship were almost 34%
lower than for men.

"This finding aligns with general scholarship regarding inequity in compensation, and our findings demonstrate that discrepancies by gender
can occur in the college internship process as well," said Zilvinskis.

Also contributing to this research from Binghamton University were
Professor of Psychology Jennifer Gillis and Assistant Vice President
for Student Success Kelli Smith.

"Although tremendous strides have been made for women in the workplace,
we must continue to identify points of inequality," said Gillis.

To move toward equity in pay for college internships for female students,
Smith recommends implicit bias training for those within university
settings who advise students on career decision making, whether faculty
or career advisors; having universities analyze and be transparent in
sharing pay data disaggregated by gender; working with employers to
ensure awareness; and providing educational sessions for students on
internship seeking and salary negotiation.

"Since career advising and support is everyone's business within a
university setting -- not just career centers -- it is important that
all members directly serving students be informed of such findings to
effect change," said Smith.

"Career centers can play a leading role with both training for campus
staff, faculty and employer partners, and designing relevant student educational content and programming."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Binghamton_University. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. John Zilvinskis, Jennifer Gillis, Kelli K. Smith. Unpaid Versus Paid
Internships: Group Membership Makes the Difference. Journal
of College Student Development, 2020; 61 (4): 510 DOI:
10.1353/csd.2020.0042 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200818094024.htm

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