Florida among worst states for paid internships

• The Sunshine State isn’t so sunny when it comes to paid internships, ranking low for both pay rate and paid opportunities.
• Florida pays interns less than most other states, ranking 35th in the nation for hourly intern pay rate.
• The state also affords comparatively fewer opportunities for paid interns, offering a higher rate of unpaid internships than most states.

A majority of employers end up offering full-time jobs to their interns, according to a survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. In fact, about 70% of interns land a job with their employer after their internship is over. Major companies, including General Electric, Lockheed Martin, Goldman Sachs, IBM, NBCUniversal, and all of the Big Four accounting firms, are known to hire a large percentage of their staff directly from their pool of interns.

Depending on the target industry, an internship could be a crucial step in landing a job, especially for those fresh out of college. However, the financial viability of interning can be a gamble, as internships tend to vary wildly in their pay rates – with many offering little to no compensation. (Here are the highest paying jobs you can get without a college degree.)

According to career search website Zippia, the average hourly wage for interns in Florida stands at $14.75, the 16th lowest among the 50 states.

Meanwhile, a recent report from online lender CashNetUSA found that 17.9% of all internships in Florida were unpaid as of August 2022, the seventh largest share of all states.

To determine these rankings, CashNetUSA reviewed internship salary data from more than 100 U.S. industries. Average hourly pay for paid internships in each state was sourced from Zippia.