After a long period of hesitation¹, Gao Jing finally calls her father. “Dad, can you send some money to me? I have to pay my rent.”

犹豫再三，高晶最后还是拨通了父亲的电话：“爸爸，能给我打点钱么？我得付房租。”

When this 22-year-old majoring in Chinese language and literature at Nankai University interned³ with a video website in Beijing, she found her income was too small to cover her expenses.

今年22岁的高晶就读于南开大学汉语语言文学专业。曾在北京的一家视频网站实习的她发现，自己的实习收入根本无法承担生活开支。

In fact, more than 30 percent of students have trouble covering their expenses during summer internships and other programs, according to a survey conducted by renren.com last month.

人人网上月的一项调查显示，超过30%的大学生在参加暑期实习或其他项目时都入不敷出。

College students are struggling to deal with this tough reality in their own way. What they appreciate more are working experiences and self-improvement.

面对残酷的现实，大学生们有着各自的应对之法。他们更看重工作经历与自我提升。

Broken picture

梦想破灭

With a monthly internship⁴ earnings⁵ reaching more than 2,000 yuan, Gao Jing thought she could make a living on her own in Beijing.

高晶的实习月工资超过2000元，她曾经以为自己可以在北京独立生活了。

But 1,2000 yuan went to her rent, ruining her plan. Additionally, she’s required to pay rent three months at a time, and she had to submit a one-month security deposit⁶. “I don’t earn any money, but I have so many expenses,” she says.

但是，12000元的房租打乱了高晶的计划。而且，房租还需要押一付三。她说，“钱还没有赚到，开支却有这么多。”

Gao must also continue attending her classes in Tianjin, meaning she has to pay at least 500 yuan per month in transportation fees.

此外，高晶还要回天津上课，这就意味着她每月至少还要花费500元的路费。

To save money, she orders take-out, costing her 20 yuan every day.

为了省钱，她每天点外卖，吃饭只花20元。

While she technically⁷ paid to participate in the internship, she feels what she gained wasn’t worth it. Her job was to select and edit⁸ videos. “It wasn’t challenging. I wanted to conduct interviews and write news,” she said.

虽然一直在倒贴，但高晶觉得这份实习并不值得。她的工作是挑选和剪辑视频。她说，“这份实习毫无挑战，采访和写新闻才是我想做的。”

She originally planned to look for a job after completing the internship in Beijing, but now she’s decided⁹ to return to Tianjin. “After all, I’ll feel less stress and I’ll be able to find another company I can learn more from,” she said.

高晶本打结束实习后继续在北京找工作，但现在她决定回天津。她说，“毕竟，（天津的）压力更小，而且我也能再找一家公司，从中学到更多。”

Expensive taste

高昂的经历

Compared to Gao, Li Meijuan, 21, a drama, film and literature student at the China Institute of Industrial Relations, seems to have had more luck. Li still lives in her dormitory, meaning her rent is under control.

与高晶相比，来自中国劳动关系学院戏剧影视文学专业21岁的李美娟似乎更幸运。她实习时可以住在宿舍，减少了住宿开支。

But as an intern² with an international publishing group, her monthly income is just 1,000 yuan, which covers only her food expenses.

虽然在一家国际出版公司实习，李美娟每月的收入却只有1000元，仅够用来吃饭。

Working in the Beijing central business district, she spends 50 to 60 yuan each day on breakfast and lunch. “The restaurants in the area are all expensive,” she says.

李美娟实习的公司位于北京中央商业区，每天的早、午饭就要花去50到60元。她说，“这里的餐馆价格都很贵。”

To save money, she tries to eat dinner at school, and sometimes she *skips the meal altogether.

为了省钱，她都尽量回校吃晚饭，有时甚至不吃晚饭。

She feels the experience is worth it. Working in the new media department, she’s learned how to do fashion marketing¹⁰ across a variety of platforms. “This job is interesting,” she says. “It will help me apply for a business masters degree abroad.”

尽管如此，她觉得这份实习很有意义。通过在新媒体部门的工作，她学会了如何在各种平台进行时尚营销。她说，“这是一份有趣的工作，对我申请国外商务硕士学位很有帮助。”

Experience counts

经验最重要

It’s better to care more about your experiences than your income according to Huang Ruoshan, a career development consultant¹¹ at zhaopin.com. “It is unrealistic to expect high earnings from an internship, as up until now, there have been no specific rules on how to *compensate interns,” she says. “The company hires students to do *supplemental work. Also, students don’t have a diploma or working experience.”

来自智联招聘的职业发展顾问黄若珊认为，大学生应该更关注实习经验而非实习收入。她说，“在实习中获得高收入是不现实的。目前还没有关于实习报酬的具体规定。公司雇佣大学生也只是做些辅助性工作，而这些学生既没有毕业证书，也没有工作经验。”

When choosing internships, she says students should consider their major interests and the cost. “Making a budget and changing wasteful¹² spending habits are effective ways to strike a balance between income and expenses,” she adds.

在选择实习工作时，她建议大学生兼顾兴趣和费用。黄若珊还说，“做好预算、改掉消费浪费的习惯都是取得收支平衡的有效方法。”