KARACHI:
The HEC’s recent decision to make internships mandatory is not going to help students. While interns are routinely given heavy and exhausting workloads, these tasks offer almost no real professional learning. Students work full-time, pay for their own daily transport and food, and receive zero compensation in return. Even worse, some organisations actually demand that students pay them just to get an internship.
In the UK, interns working full-time who help run a business get minimum wage. In the US, for-profit companies are legally required to pay full-time interns. However, in Pakistan, there are no such legal protections at all.
Considering the high costs and time spent, internships have become a heavy burden rather than a platform for youth to develop their skills and gain practical experience. To fix this, the HEC must enforce a minimum stipend for all registered internships and set clear standards for the quality of work. The government must also pass laws ensuring that students who work full-time receive basic compensation for their work.
Yahya Abdullah
Islamabad
