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Business internships can be a great way to break into a company, contact with members, and gain great work experience. They are also just about the only way to get a paying job for many companies—you start at the bottom. However there are other companies and industries which actually run the risk of being fined by the Department of Labor, treating interns like unpaid workers and foisting menial labor and long hours on them with no rewards or compensation.

Here are fair some bottom line business internship limits you should ask about, and things you should keep in mind during your time as an intern.

You should receive compensation in one form or another. That can mean college credit, a stipend, or the guarantee of a good recommendation.

You should hear up front from human resources that your hours are limited and regular, not late night, that your tasks will be limited to the focus of your internship (not coffee making or errand running), and that there is a system in place for you to contact them if your rights are violated.

The internship should be limited t o one semester, any longer than that and you should be hired or brought on freelance.

During your time as a business intern focus on the people. Try to keep in touch with managers and fellow interns as they can help bring you along with their success in the future.

Be positive and ask questions, make suggestions, but don’t overstep your bounds. Try to get noticed and avoid coming off as shy, but don’t be overbearing.

It is increasingly common for college graduates to find themselves working for extended periods of time as interns following graduation, instead of working during their school years in exchange for student credit. The reasons why more and more college degree holders are doing so are saddening, but understandable.

Working as an intern, even an unpaid intern, is a great way to get in touch with a company and build connections. Also many companies are using internships as a trial period to help weigh and measure candidates for future hiring.

Working as an intern is also a great way to build relevant work experience and show that you are a competitive individuals when you are handing out your resume in the future. Also, with the labor market so competitive, getting any sort of start following graduation and preventing the ever frightening gap in employment that costs many the consideration of employers is no small matter.

However, interns do deserve certain protections and compensation. While many companies do use internship jobs as a hiring pool, others see them simply as free and expendable labor, easier to terminate and cheaper even than using a temp agency.

Be careful of any internship which would involve managing other interns, as this is probably a free labor system in violation of rules set up by the Department of Labor. You need to have a set mentor, set (part time) hours, a stipend for travel at least, and your tasks need to be specific to what you were promised when you signed up. Also make sure that you internship has a set length, as any work you do over four months or so should entitle you to a wage.

Since Xuedan Wang’s lawsuit was filed against fashion magazine Harper’s Bazar, many people in the industry are talking about why unpaid internships are so prevalent and if they are even a good thing at all. While it is true that fashion internships are basically the only way to break into the industry many argue that the widespread practice of hiring long term unpaid interns is fundamentally damaging to the industry and the economy. Many interns face a total lack of compensation (whether college credit or stipends—a condition which creates an economic class division between those with the family money to afford to work for free and those who do not), long hours, scorn, and a market where unpaid internships are actually edging out opportunities for employment.

How can you tell if a fashion internship is worth it? You need to look and make sure that the company you are working for has an established internship program with set limitations and rules.

Your internship should offer compensation, either a stipend for travel at least, or college credit.

Interns should not be allowed to work for they company for more than one semester at a time, any longer and you should be hired for your time.

Interns should have an orientation with human resources where they are clearly instructed as to their expectations, the company’s limits in what it can ask of them, and who they should talk to if they feel their rights are being violated.

Internships should have set hours in the day, limited to part time. These hours should be regular and regulated—no late night pickups or working through the night. Save that for someone who is making a wage.

Interns will work on projects relevant to the field of the internship—not making coffee, not answering phones (unless it applies), and not making personal errands for staff members.

Looking to find a college internship? It might not be as easy as you think. With increasing market pressure making it harder and harder to find enter level or even intern type positions the market for available options is more competitive than ever. But with a little work and the right preparation you can certainly land a powerful and beneficial college internship that can help change your whole college experience.

Basically getting a college internship is a lot like getting an entry level job. Most the steps are the same. You need to start out by preparing resume. This resume should be one page only (single sided), have your contact information, your educational history, and your skill set along with any nonprofit or work experience in your past. Use bullet points and organize your resume by type of experience, education listed first.

Next you need cover letters for each opportunity. Try to keep these short and to the point, while still giving them a sketch of who you are, where you are coming from, and what you want. A cover letter is a lot like an elevator pitch—you need to write enough to get someone interested in you, but keep it short enough for them to skim inside twenty seconds.

Next the interview. Practice with friends, associates, or interview prep sessions setup by your school. Make sure to dress professionally but also try to be loose. Talk to the person who you are interviewing with professionally, but also as a human being. And try to be excited for the opportunity—your enthusiasm counts for a lot!

Thinking of pursuing overseas internships abroad during your time in college, or perhaps as a work study supplement? Well it is a great idea and one that you should feel free to try. Use your time towards a meaningful and memorable opportunity in a place you would probably never visit otherwise.

Here are some big internship ideas for you to consider, and what they might entail.

Volunteer for a leadership or boots on the ground position with the Peace Corps or another organization in the third world. There are infinite possibilities and places and people you can impact and help even while you gain work experience and fill out your resume.

Business internships oversees are a great way to use your language skills and build a niche, as international language experience can help open up numerous doors and windows to career positions later in life. You can even find an international organization with spots in both the US and overseas, and possibly turn your internship into a job when you are finished.

Ecology internships are sometimes hard to find, but the opportunity to work in a nature oriented field can launch any biology or chemistry career while also helping gain real life work experience and benefit conservation organizations while protecting precious natural resources.

Partner with another college or university. Most US colleges and universities have ‘sister campuses’ oversees, colleges with whom they can exchange resources and students. If possible take a semester at one of these colleges, gain some language experience, and also keep up on your college class schedule.