For many students, internships are simply seen as a step in the right direction toward their careers. However, the rules and the generalizations associated with them are more complicated than some realize.

Internships obviously have their perks. As a study by The Wall Street Journal points out, the average percentage of entry-level hires who come from interning as an undergraduate at the same company lies between 20 and 65 percent. For many undergraduate students, this is ideal, as they are interested in securing a position in the work field post-graduation.

But freshmen and sophomores have yet to receive adequate training in their fields, and because of this, employers are hesitant to hire them.

There are some who argue against hiring underclassmen. In fact, some departments and internship coordinators at San Diego State do not allow students to obtain credit for internships until their senior years, because if unqualified students take internship positions they aren’t prepared for, they won’t fully understand what the job or field entails.

Just as interns are exemplified in sitcoms such as “The Office” and “Scrubs,” the fear is inexperienced students will be relegated to running errands or filing papers as opposed to getting on-the-job experience. And such on-the-job experience doesn’t always have the form of compensation that students may want or need.

For example, if a student in California has an opportunity to intern at the job of their dreams, they must turn it down if it is unpaid and school credit is not offered. Unfortunately for students, internships demand time from students’ busy schedules, and many are not paid. Even seniors may have to choose between paying the bills now, or sacrificing money for an internship they can only hope will allow them to steadily pay the bills later.

With a struggling economy and a lacking job market, some students will do anything to get their foot in the door and expose themselves in the field.

But this also allows for problems. Again, many argue students attempt to obtain internships too early and without the proper educational training. Therefore, they aren’t able to implement their skills because they haven’t learned them yet.

As students search for internships, they may want to keep all this in mind to ensure the internship is beneficial .