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| Ross Perlin (Verso Books) |
Perlin feels the release of his book, Intern Nation: How to Earn Nothing and Learn Little in the Brave New Economy, in May 2011 has created a solid foundation for more research on the subject and ignited conversation in the media.
A Curious Mind
As an undergrad at Stanford, Perlin recalls his peers constantly looking for, working or talking about internships. Consumed with summer jobs, school and travel, Perlin did not intern until attending graduate school at the University of London.
After working unpaid with several other interns at a Non-Governmental Organization, Perlin became curious about the concept of the internship. “First I kind of wanted to read something, a book or a nice long article, that would tell me about internships and where they had come about,” said Perlin. Although he searched extensively, “I didn’t really find anything of any length or detail; there were almost no statistics” on the topic, he said.
Desperate for a cohesive look at the internship in today’s world, Perlin decided to tackle the issue himself.
Starting from Scratch
With no investigative or journalism background besides an obsession with his high school newspaper, Perlin blindly began to dig through the little information he could find.
“I was kind of figuring out how to investigate a topic almost from scratch, a topic a lot of people know about and have a story about but there wasn’t very much material of any kind around, so that was the big challenge and interest of doing the book,” said Perlin. Recognizing public interest in the issue, he started out with the idea of writing an article between five and ten thousand words. After finishing, he found the word count limiting.
“It felt like such an overview, I felt it should be extended, and inform people,” said Perlin. “It was about widening the perspective to see the issue in its full ramifications.”
From here, the idea of the book was born.
With little existing background or research, Perlin relied on what he calls a “convenience sample” to get the ball rolling. He talked to everyone he knew and everyone he met to get their internship stories. “If they said something that sparked me, I would talk further about it. It was based on people I know, not scientific,” he said.
Perlin continued his search for specific examples by posting online, on message boards and simply by going places and meeting people. “Sometimes I would just post up signs in cafes or wherever and tried to cast a wide net, but also I focused on things where I knew there were relevant stories,” he said.
Because of the lack of statistics on the topic, Perlin acquired personal testimony from numerous interviews to drive the story. “I traveled around a lot to meet people in person,” he said. To make the most out of interviews, he found it was best to establish a relationship with the subject however he could.
“I definitely find that you get the better stuff after you’ve been talking for a little while already, going out for a cup of coffee…or going out for a few beers is a little better,” said Perlin.
Due to the nature of the book, in some cases he found people reluctant to sign their name to their stories. Perlin made the decision to obscure identities in the book for the protection of his sources. “I do think it’s always better to name names, it lends an air of reality to the story you’re telling,” he said. However, since he relied on powerful stories to drive the book due to a lack of prior research and statistics, he opted to protect his sources and stick with the good stories.
Even with this protection, some sources were still scared. “I thought it was a crucial, big story but the person involved kinda went back and forth and they were too afraid ultimately to let me use it,” said Perlin of a Hollywood story he found of particular interest.
Sources can be over-anxious about some things that are not too big of a deal, advised Perlin. “I don’t believe that you have to bend over backwards [to protect him], but I think what a source tells you on the record is fair game,” said Perlin.
Although he was blazing the trail writing a book on internships, Perlin was able to find some data on specific issues from academics and other organizations that care about internships. The National Association for Colleges and Employers as well as Intern Bridge conducted a few surveys he found helpful in his research. However, he noted a bias in the data since it was only recorded in instances of school-based internships for academic credit. These types of internships only make up a portion of all employed interns.
Perlin found it difficult to address all sides of the story, especially when he thought the issue had five or six different sides. “I felt the most important side was the interns themselves, so I gave them priority of place,” he said.
To give equal opportunity to employers, he contacted them to get their perspective, but in most cases he found responses automated and added little to the bigger picture. “You don’t need to give everyone their moment in the sun if they don’t have something specific to say,” said Perlin.
The Long Haul
Perlin conducted his research and interviews over two years, and compiled it all into the writing of the book over an additional year. “Keeping organized was not easy, but I had a good sense of what the chapter layout would be,” he said.
After an interview, Perlin would put the file into a certain box designated to a chapter, to remember he wanted the information to appear in that chapter. “Later I did often want to bring issues across chapters, so I organized things by theme and kept all the sources relevant to that theme in one place,” he said.
One of the most immediate and rewarding consequences of the book’s release came through its own publisher. “Soon after they decided to publish it, they were convinced enough to pay their own interns,” said Perlin.
