A temporary job or position where a student or beginner gains practical experience and training in a real workplace.
From *intern* “student or trainee working in a job to gain experience,” which comes from Latin *internus* “internal, within.” The idea grew from medical training, where doctors worked inside hospitals to learn.
An internship is like a test‑drive for your future career: you get to see how the job really feels before you fully commit. Companies also use internships as a low‑risk way to “audition” future employees.
Internships have often reflected broader workplace gender inequalities, with women and gender minorities overrepresented in unpaid or low-paid roles and underrepresented in technical or leadership-track internships. Historically, informal networks—often male-dominated—mediated access to prestigious internships, reinforcing gender gaps.
Use 'intern' and 'internship' without assuming gendered fields (e.g., women in care roles, men in technical roles). Be explicit about fair pay, anti-harassment policies, and equal access when describing or designing internships.
["training placement","practicum","work placement"]
Women have driven major advances as interns and early-career researchers in labs, tech firms, and public institutions, even when their titles obscured their substantive contributions to research, engineering, and policy.
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