internship

Beginner 👥 Human Resources

Definition

A mutually beneficial arrangement where students gain "valuable experience" while companies gain valuable free (or underpaid) labor. Often the corporate equivalent of an audition, where bright-eyed candidates perform grunt work in exchange for LinkedIn bragging rights and the distant promise of actual employment. Despite the educational spin, it's basically a trial period where both parties determine if they can tolerate each other for 40+ hours a week.

Example Usage

After completing three unpaid internships, Jessica finally landed a job that paid enough to cover her student loans... in 20 years.

Source: Common industry terminology

Related Terms

Advanced

acculturation

The anthropological term for when cultures collide and one (usually the smaller or newer one) starts adopting the customs, values, and Starbucks preferences of the other. It's the process immigrants and minority groups experience when adapting to a dominant culture, or what happens when your startup gets absorbed by a corporate giant. Think cultural osmosis, but with power dynamics.

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cooling-off period

A mandatory waiting period before former employees can be rehired, theoretically preventing abuse of severance or unemployment benefits. It's the corporate version of 'you can't come back until you think about what you've done.'

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Corporate Culture

The collection of unwritten rules, forced fun, and motivational posters that define what it's like to work somewhere. It's what the company says it values on the website versus what actually happens in the breakroom. These two things have never met.

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Beginner

diversity

The corporate buzzword for having a workplace that actually reflects what the real world looks like, rather than a 1950s country club. It's the intentional inclusion of people from different backgrounds, races, genders, and experiences, ideally moving beyond token representation to genuine equality. When done right, it's transformative; when done wrong, it's a checkbox on a compliance form.

👥 Human Resources
Intermediate

disengagement

In HR contexts, the state of emotional and mental disconnection employees experience from their work, colleagues, or organization. It's what happens when people show up physically but checked out mentally months ago, doing the bare minimum while updating their LinkedIn profiles. Companies spend millions trying to measure and reverse it, usually by adding more meetings about engagement.

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Intermediate

cafeteria plan

A benefits program allowing employees to choose from various options like a cafeteria line, allocating dollars across health insurance, retirement, and other perks. Provides choice while ensuring everyone complains about different things.

👥 Human Resources

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