Right off the bat, this weekend's edition of the Philadelphia Metro had a front page headline that hit pretty close to home - "Rough economy hits interns seeking jobs." As a sophomore college student, this article really did a good job of giving a thorough perspective on how dire this situation currently is.
A survey early on mentioned that "companies cut paid internships by 21 percent this year." Initially, this does not surprise me one bit at all. Within my Temple email account, I keep getting notices from various newspapers and radio stations in the area looking for interns. Now, I would absolutely love an internship, but the only ones offered right now are unpaid.
This puts me in a really tough situation. I want an internship in the Philadelphia area, but to be able to even participate, I need to have a place to stay. It's much more difficult trying to live in an apartment for an extended period of time without getting paid where you're putting your time and effort in. So, it looks like if I plan on taking an unpaid internship, I'm going to have to secure another job just to pay for my rent.
But, how can we possibly rid ourselves of this horrible situation? As the title mentioned, this whole scenario is prompted by the rough economy. With that said, the only way out seems to be through successful implementation of Obama's stimulus plan. Whether that happens or not, no one knows, but this problem needs to get fixed as soon as possible, by any means necessary.
In other news, SEPTA recently approved a new day pass for commuters of their transit system. Set to become available May 1st, this pass is reported to cost $10 for individuals and $25 for families of up to five people. In addition, this pass will basically allow unlimited rides on any of SEPTA's services, including subway, bus, regional rail and trolley.
This is a phenomenal idea and I definitely approve. Suppose I wanted to head down to Philly for dinner at main campus and a Flyers game? As of right now, the price for a round-trip regional rail ride is $8. Add to that another round-trip fare, this time on the Broad St. subway line. In the end, this comes out to $10.90. While this pass will not reduce the cost of this particular trip by that much, I think it will end up having a different effect altogether.
With the prospect of unlimited rides for only $10, I think this will help tempt more individuals to venture into Philly and check out the sights. Especially when one considers that this new pass will be implemented, (hopefully,) at the beginning of May, that adds even more reason to travel down. At that point, the weather will be much nicer and there will be even more incentive to check out the history of Independence Hall, take a stroll around Fairmount Park or even run up the steps of the Art Museum. No matter what activity is chosen, this really is a great idea and I can't wait for a break from school to head downtown.
1 Comment
Dave
3/28/2009 01:30:41 pm
supply and demand bro! you can make sweet money for doing uninteresting stuff, or make uninteresting money doing sweet stuff. but live in the city and enjoy life while ya have the opportunity. the hard part is to think that the decisions you're making now may affect your income and opportunities for your entire life. whew!
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My name is Mike Revak, a Journalism major at Temple University. For more info, please click the About Me tab at the top of the page. Other than that, this is my website, I try to update frequently on a variety of topics, so check it all out and let me know what you think! CategoriesArchives
April 2009
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