Opportunity of a lifetime or advertisement for a dogsbody

So, I've been thinking a lot about the future of late, you may have noticed the undercurrent of panic that these posts sometimes have. It's getting to that crazy time of university, when you're getting threw ideas, hints, tips, imperatives and scare stories from practically everyone you every encounter on a day to day basis. Whether it's receiving pointless emails from the careers service, telling you about jobs at a variety of different middle of the road companies, or from lecturers advertising studentships at the most stressful time in your degree, the general atmosphere is one of blind panic.

For many graduates, the inevitable caveat is that experience is essential. Over the next few months and perhaps years, we will get told by everyone the importance of getting your foot in the door, making connections and keeping your ear to the ground. I totally get this, getting a degree is no longer enough. Experience is vital to your own personal development and this is a message I've been trying to get across, especially in relation to volunteering, which has infinitely enriched my human experience.

However, talk of graduate work experience inevitably brings up internship, a moral minefield and what may be come an increasing reality in graduates lives. Although, I agree that experience is important, and I'm glad that I've offered my time to charitable organisations, I am starting to become dubious of companies 'offering' experience to graduates. The problem of internships is many fold. Firstly there's a class issue. If you're going to work for free, you need the financial support (presumably from parents)  to get through the weeks or months when money isn't coming in. I know that I wouldn't have this, and that as a result, either internships would be completely out of the question, or I would have to take on a part time job to support the work I'm doing for free.

Whilst I know from personal experience that work experience can be mutually beneficial (my own experience of interning part time whilst still at university was extremely positive and I felt I gained new skills whilst helping out a reasonably small company), it's clear that some companies are simply taking the piss. Interns Anonymous provides a range of graduate experiences with some tales of warning , whilst campaigning for pay guidelines for work experience. It seems ludicrous that large companies are able to use graduates for nothing, whilst not providing their interns with interesting tasks and little chance of a job. A set of guidelines would be welcome, as graduates need to know where they stand when they go for that opportunity of a lifetime.