Dr. John Zilvinskis received his M.A. degree in Student Affairs Administration from Michigan State University and Ph.D. from Indiana University. He is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Student Affairs Administration at Binghamton University, State University of New York. His research interest includes survey research measuring student engagement in higher education. Website: https://www.johnzilvinskis.com
Findings add to growing concerns about the wage gap between men and women – as well as a gap between Asians and whites.
The Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development at Binghamton University recently hosted its eighth annual Career Champions Breakfast.
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.
Women and Asian students are significantly less likely than their counterparts who identify as men or white to receive payment during internships. This finding is based on an analysis of 2,410 responses to the National Survey of Student Engagement. The trend held up even when student background, academic major and the type of college attended were taken into account.
These data were part of a set of survey questions that measure the quality of students’ internship experiences. Our study was published in the July/August issue of the Journal of College Student Development. Using statistical analysis, we found that the calculated odds of women getting paid during their internships were 34% lower than for the men in the sample. For Asian, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander students, their odds were 50% lower than for white students.
Our finding that women were less likely than men to land a paid internship adds to concerns about the gender wage gap. Data show a wage gap of 27% between women and men.