“Some days I’d leave the office at 5:00 pm, get on the tube after a full day of work and think about how I was doing it all for free.” This is an increasingly common reality for many students and college graduates, such as Ahmed, who worked for six whole months without pay because he could not find a paid job. Even for a physics graduate from one of the UK’s top universities, finding a job is no easy task. He had already spent two years applying to more than 50 internships, and after much effort, last year’s cycle finally bore fruit. He secured a full-time, unpaid internship at an AI startup in England.

When explaining why he took an unpaid position rather than keep searching for a paid one, Ahmed responded: “I took it because there weren’t enough open positions in the job market … unpaid roles often have a higher chance of selection. You need to take unpaid opportunities to create more internships for yourself.”

Ahmed described the routine as mentally exhausting. After spending a full day contributing to projects at the AI startup, he would commute home, wondering whether the experience he was gaining would eventually translate into stable, paid employment. The internship provided exposure to one of the world’s fastest-growing industries, but it offered little financial security and no guarantee of future employment.

Ahmed’s experience may have taken place in London, but it reflects a broader, global reality. In fact, it is one that Pakistani graduates are all too familiar with as they search for work in a country where internship protections are even weaker.

According to the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE), in Pakistan, more than 60% of internships in fields such as IT, media, marketing and finance are either unpaid or offer negligible compensation.

The prevalence of unpaid internships reflects broader pressures within Pakistan’s labor market. As more students pursue university degrees and white-collar employment opportunities remain limited, employers can draw from a large pool of applicants willing to accept unpaid work in exchange for experience, networking opportunities or the possibility of future employment.

Internships and education

Internships have simultaneously become part of academics. The Higher Education Commission (HEC), which regulates higher education institutions across Pakistan, has made it mandatory for students to complete at least one internship in their respective fields to graduate. Interns are not required to be compensated, so the policy effectively shifts part of the workforce training cost onto students. Increasingly, employers treat experience as a prerequisite for paid work. Obtaining that experience, however, often means working for free. 

It is also important to note that for middle-or lower-class students, choosing to take an unpaid internship is a difficult decision. With neither reimbursement for commuting expenses nor a stipend to support living costs, they often have to forgo opportunities that would both provide valuable experience and enrich their resumes. This financial barrier prevents long-term growth and only deepens the class divide. 

Students from wealthier families are often better positioned to absorb the financial costs associated with unpaid work, whether through family support, savings or access to housing in major urban centers. For lower-income students, however, accepting an unpaid internship can mean sacrificing income from part-time work or taking on additional financial strain simply to remain competitive in the job market.

As a result, access to professional experience is increasingly tied not only to talent or qualifications but also to financial circumstances. The internships designed to help students build careers may simultaneously reinforce existing social and economic inequalities.

The experience gap 

People often describe internships as learning opportunities. On average, interns work between ten and 20 hours per week, varying depending on the organization’s needs. 

“When you’re working at a firm, the organization needs you,” said Saliha Shah, a lawyer specializing in employment matters. “But with interns, that dynamic becomes more complex.” 

Her comments highlight one of the central ambiguities surrounding internships. Organizations often frame internships as educational opportunities intended to help students develop skills and workplace familiarity. At the same time, interns may still perform productive labor that directly benefits employers, blurring the line between training and unpaid work.

She explained that the nature of the work determines how that relationship evolves:

If the firm is making you do their work, which includes traveling for business purposes, paying Uber charges, or covering any expenses related to the firm’s operations, then the organization must compensate you. These costs should not fall on the intern.

At the same time, she observed that different organizations structure their internships in various ways. “If you’re not doing a long-term internship and you’re only working for one or two months, then you’re not a necessity for the organization. You’re there to gain experience and develop your skills.” 

This highlights how variation in internship structure means the experience differs from intern to intern. 

Legal frameworks in Pakistan 

When it comes to Pakistan’s labor laws, internships exist in a grey area. Legislation such as the 1934 Factories Act makes no mention of them, leaving interns without any formal legal protection. 

This is a bleak reality when compared to countries like France, where the national internship policy has been dubbed “Best Practice” by the European Youth Forum. French law mandates that employers pay interns for any internship exceeding two months, considers unpaid internships outside education to be illegal and grants interns the same rights as regular staff, including sick leave and transport subsidies. 

No such legal framework exists to protect interns in Pakistan. 

The contrast highlights how different countries approach the relationship between education and labor. In parts of Europe, people increasingly view internship protections as necessary safeguards against exploitation and economic exclusion. In Pakistan, however, internships remain largely unregulated, leaving employers with broad discretion over compensation, expectations and working conditions. 

Why unpaid internships persist despite ethical backlash 

For some employers, financial and operational constraints shape unpaid internships. 

“Mostly because we are operating on a lower budget and can’t finance every talent we are supervising to continue as full-time,” said Waheed, an HR representative at a local pharmaceutical company. “It’s also a way to test talent for the future. It lets us know which candidate has the potential to contribute to the company or not.” 

Many employers view internships as a mutual decision rather than an imposed responsibility. 

“The company hires when it sees its own benefit. The candidates apply because they see theirs,” Waheed said. “There is no compulsion or force. They are fully aware of the expectations and compensation.” 

When asked about legality, Waheed responded, “Illegal? No. Unethical? Maybe. But it isn’t a simple question, and as a company, you have to make decisions that are in your best interest. The market is tough, and although this may not be an ideal situation for graduates, it is just a common practice now.” 

Waheed’s comments reflect a broader reality within competitive labor markets. In industries where companies face budget constraints and applicants significantly outnumber available positions, employers often have little economic incentive to offer compensation when candidates are willing to accept unpaid roles in exchange for experience.

Waheed also pointed to how internships occupy a different position from jobs. “Internships are not advertised as part-time or full-time jobs. People may pursue them for corporate experience, work culture or just an insight into how organizations operate.” 

For applicants like Ahmed, that trade-off is a critical part of the decision-making process. 

Employer alternatives 

Mahad Imran, who runs operations management at an AI automation agency, described a different approach to hiring interns. “We were better off hiring ambitious university students rather than full-time graduates,” he said. “We could identify raw talent and then train them up to our standards.” 

Internal priorities, rather than external pressure, drove the decision to compensate interns. “We offered compensation because we could do it. I’ve been very conscious of the culture I grow in this company, so I ensured that interns were compensated fairly for their work,” he added. “It didn’t feel right not to pay when we had the resources.”

Still, he noted that compensation does not necessarily determine long-term outcomes. “I don’t think there’s any relation between paid internships and full-time jobs,” he stated. “I’ve seen people get jobs after unpaid internships, and I’ve also seen people not get jobs after paid ones.” 

A competitive market 

We cannot understand the issue at hand without acknowledging the wider employment context in which it exists. According to Trading Economics, Pakistan’s unemployment rate was approximately 5.4% in 2025. The youth unemployment rate is considerably higher — almost double. According to Statista, it stood at 9.59% in 2025. When one in ten young people can’t find work, there is immense pressure to accept whatever role, paid or unpaid, comes one’s way. 

“Everybody has the same level of education, and the competition per position has increased significantly,” remarked Ahmed. “Previously, people used to get degrees with a stronger idea of what they wanted to do post-graduation. Nowadays, many people get degrees just for the sake of having one and continue without a clear goal.” 

He also pointed to hiring processes as a contributing factor. “AI runs the hiring process, which means a lot of people are filtered out before reaching interview stages,” he said. “There should be more human intervention.” 

As companies increasingly rely on automated recruitment systems to manage large applicant pools, graduates often feel pressure to accumulate additional internships, certifications and extracurricular experience simply to remain competitive. Many applicants believe that the hiring process has become more algorithmic and less personal, which makes them less certain about how evaluators assess them. 

This is an extremely pressing concern for both internship and job seekers. For many applicants, this adds another layer of uncertainty to an already difficult hiring process. It may be a step aiming to streamline processes, but it also means less and eventually minimal human consideration. 

Where it leaves graduates 

The current HEC policy means that internships play a crucial role in graduation. “Graduates today have it harder,” sighed Ahmed. “There are more people, more degrees and fewer opportunities.” The data, as well as the widespread experience of thousands of young people, confirms this. He added, “There should be better allocation, making sure people who actually want to work get the chance to reach that stage.” 

The debate surrounding unpaid internships reflects broader questions about labor, education and economic mobility. Students often rely on these gateways to enter professional careers, but their access depends on whether they can afford to work without compensation. As economic pressures continue to grow, the gap between gaining experience and earning income becomes increasingly difficult for many graduates to navigate. 

Graduates today are entering a world marked by political turmoil, economic uncertainty and an increasingly tough job market. When they show up ready to work and prove themselves, we should make sure they are not required to do so for free. It’s 2026, and internship protections should be regarded as standard, not a luxury.

[Paradigm Shift first published a version of this piece.]

[Liam Roman edited this piece.] 

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.