My Internship From Hell!

I have recently read an interesting article on one of the blogs that I follow (see link: http://scholasticsnakeoil.blogspot.com/2012/01/indentured-internships.html ).  On this blog, the author, who herself has been involved in the educational arena for quite some time, talks about internships:

"Too often, the work they did in those internships bore little or no relationship to any work they would actually do in the careers or occupations for which they were preparing themselves--let alone to the theory they were learning in their classrooms."

Now, this got me thinking about my last internship here at law school.  It was for a solo practitioner with a firm dealing mostly with torts and landlord-tenant issues.  He had me come to his firm, interviewed me, and out of many applicants, I am told, I was chosen to be his worker, I mean, slave.  Now, I am used to working hard, as I have had my share of manual labor type jobs in the past.  However, what I expected to get out of the internship, and what I got, well, those are two different things.


I was told by my law school career counselor to pursue an internship EVERY semester.  I thought this would sound advice.  The more experience one has, the more likely you are to be hired.  So, I immediately applied for everything but this guy, this fiend, he was the one to call me in first.  He did not give me the address to the firm he worked at, so I googled him and found two addresses, both of which were near each other.  So, I donned my suit and headed to meet him after class.  Finally, I reached the office he worked in.  A big-ass skyscraper building reaching towards the heavens.  It looked legit.  I walked in, where a big burly man grinned ear to tooth to me and had me sign in.  No problem.  I continued onward, marching towards the elevators where my interview would take place.  


"I will not get the position.  I will not get the position," I told myself, over and over.  "I am wasting my time."  A more attractive young man sat next to me, all dressed up in a suit that was nicer than mine.  He would be interviewed after me.  I knew he would get the job.  He was prettier.  Well, I must have been better 'slave material' because I was the one who was hired.


So, three days later, when I got the e-mail that I was chosen I was ecstatic.  I went to my first day and was told that I had a number of tasks.  NONE OF THESE TASKS WERE RELATED TO LAW.

"And, if the student isn't getting practical experience from the internship, what is the employer gaining?  Free labor, of course."

These tasks were:

1.  "Water the plant once a week.  Choose the day, but make sure that plant does not die.  I will not water it, so it's up to you."
2.  "Create a filing system and rearrange my files.  There are some outside, as well."
3.  "Take this trash (old computer and printer) down to the trash room and/or find out how to dispose of it."
4.  "Make sure these walls are wiped down.  You see these coffee stains?  I want them gone."
5.  Rearrange the last intern's office area to suit your needs.  There is an ancient laptop there with Windows 2000 on it.  That will be your workstation."
6.  Go fax this form, make some copies.
7.  Run to the post office, and send these letters!
8.  Go to the UPS store.  Now boy, run! 


Basically this is the list I got.  This was my first week.  Later on I was told to brief a case of his and to call a client to make sure they were going to come in.  Oh, and I interacted with a client by taking her $20 to her car due to some overpayment.  That was interesting.  As far as practical experience, I got none.


As far as theory was concerned, I can honestly say I was getting NEGATIVE theory.  I was expected to skip class when he needed me.  Even though I gave him my schedule, he had the gull to keep me from my class!  I sent him an e-mail the next day, telling him I was done.  He was flabbergasted, he could not figure out why I would leave such a great opportunity behind.  I was really nice about it, saying "thank you" and "I value all the experience I got."  However, the truth was, I got basically nil.  When I was hired he told me how awful his last intern was and that he expected more of me.  When his P-touch was out of ribbon he actually whined about it.  He whined!  I could not believe it, a grown man actually whining!!!!! 

So that was my last internship.  I am a bit scared to get another one, out of fear it ends up the same way.  But, I realize I must if I am to succeed in this profession.