Study Finds the Majority of Denver Internships are Paid

Many students and young professionals can relate to the struggle of finding a paid internship. Unpaid internships seem to be a trend, and many companies hype their internship positions up as they offer the benefits of “gaining experience” and “making connections” while others are beginning to replace their entry-level positions with unpaid internships.

Interns often bring a lot to the table, such as new ideas and a new perspective, and often take the load of work that full-time employees don’t want to deal with. Doing the work while not getting any monetary benefit can make a lot of interns start to despite their role, as the stress from work and full-time days can take a toll on their productivity.

Luckily, if you’re looking to get an internship in Denver, it’s likely that you’ll be paid. Grand Canyon University recently conducted a nationwide study of internships across the country and found that 91% of internships in Denver are paid. This is much higher than a lot of other cities in the country, such as Austin, Texas, where only 9% of internship positions are paid. GCU found this data by analyzing internship listing descriptions on Indeed by city.

In addition to finding the amount of paid internships in the largest cities, GCU also found the average star rating of internships in each city as well as what type of industry the majority of internships are in. Denver’s internship positions have an average of 2.6 stars out of 5, and the majority of internships are made up of marketing internships (30%).

When it comes to paying interns, it ultimately comes down to an ethical question rather than a legal one. Technically, interns aren’t considered employees, so they don’t need to be paid. However, when it seems as if an intern who is working full-time is doing the same work as a full-time employee, it could be considered to be unpaid labor.

Even if you don’t already live in Denver, it’s a great place to spend time. If you’re currently looking for a summer internship position, don’t hesitate to consider interning here. Having an internship here almost guarantees you’ll be paid, and surveys show that paid internships lead to full-time job offers. Plus, you’d be living in a great city, where the economy is growing and has a higher average salary than the rest of the country. Good luck in your search!