Melissa Reyes, who graduated from Marist College with a degree in Fashion Merchandising last May, applied for a dozen jobs to no avail. She was thrilled, however, to land an internship with a fashion house in Manhattan.“They talked about what an excellent and educational internship program this would be,"she said. But Ms. Reyes soon soured on the experience. She often worked from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., five days a week."They had me running out to buy them lunch," she said.“They had me cleaning out the closets, emptying out the past season's items.”Asked about her complaints, the fashion firm said,"We are very proud of our internship program, and we take all concerns of this kind very seriously." Although many internships provide valuable experience, some unpaid interns complain that they do menial(无需技术的) work and learn little, raising questions about whether these positions violate federal rules governing such programs. On the other hand, interns say they often have no good alternatives. As a job report showed, job growth was weak, and the unemployment rate for 20-to 24-year-olds was 13.2 percent in April. The Labor Department says that if employers do not want to pay their interns, the internships must resemble vocational education, the interns must work under close supervision, they cannot be used as a substitute for regular employees, and their work cannot be of immediate benefit to the employer. But in practice, there is little to stop employers from exploiting interns. The Labor Department rarely cracks(制裁) down on offenders, saying that it has limited resources and that unpaid interns are loath to file complaints for fear of jeopardizing any future job search. No one keeps statistics on the number of college graduates taking unpaid internships, but there is widespread agreement that the number has significantly increased, not least because the jobless rate for college graduates aged 24 and under has risen to 9.4 percent, the highest level since the government began keeping records in 1985. “A few years ago you hardly heard about college graduates taking unpaid internships,"said a vice president at the Economic Policy Institute who has done several studies on interns.“But now I've even heard of people taking unpaid internships after graduating from Ivy League schools." 1 What does the author say about the unpaid internship in the first and second paragraphs? A It helps graduates apply for thrilling jobs. B It helps graduates to bargain about the salary. C It allows graduates to have meaningful programs. D It enables graduates to get better odds of being employed. 2 What does Melissa Reyes describe her internship like, according to the passage? A Serious and valuable. B Arduous but beneficial. C Educational and excellent. D Trivial with no skills required. 3 What are employers supposed to do, according to the passage? A Have interns work without supervision. B Get interns to work as regular employees. C Make interns'work benefit the company immediately. D Provide interns with something like vocational training. 4 Why are interns frequently suffering exploitation by employers? A It has become the“underlying rule”of society. B The law provides no measures to punish employers. C The government has no resources to deal with such cases. D Interns are reluctant to take official action as it may affect their future job prospect. 5 What do we learn about unpaid internships from the passage? A The quality of unpaid internships is good. B More graduates apply for unpaid internships. C Unpaid internships are an isolated phenomenon. D Unpaid internships are crucial for college graduates.

Confronted with the worst job market in decades, many college graduates who expected to land paid jobs are turning to unpaid internships to try to get a foot in an employer's door. Melissa Reyes, who graduated from Marist College with a degree in Fashion Merchandising last May, applied for a dozen jobs to no avail. She was thrilled, however, to land an internship with a fashion house in Manhattan.“They talked about what an excellent and educational internship program this would be,"she said. But Ms. Reyes soon soured on the experience. She often worked from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., five days a week."They had me running out to buy them lunch," she said.“They had me cleaning out the closets, emptying out the past season's items.”Asked about her complaints, the fashion firm said,"We are very proud of our internship program, and we take all concerns of this kind very seriously." Although many internships provide valuable experience, some unpaid interns complain that they do menial(无需技术的) work and learn little, raising questions about whether these positions violate federal rules governing such programs. On the other hand, interns say they often have no good alternatives. As a job report showed, job growth was weak, and the unemployment rate for 20-to 24-year-olds was 13.2 percent in April. The Labor Department says that if employers do not want to pay their interns, the internships must resemble vocational education, the interns must work under close supervision, they cannot be used as a substitute for regular employees, and their work cannot be of immediate benefit to the employer. But in practice, there is little to stop employers from exploiting interns. The Labor Department rarely cracks(制裁) down on offenders, saying that it has limited resources and that unpaid interns are loath to file complaints for fear of jeopardizing any future job search. No one keeps statistics on the number of college graduates taking unpaid internships, but there is widespread agreement that the number has significantly increased, not least because the jobless rate for college graduates aged 24 and under has risen to 9.4 percent, the highest level since the government began keeping records in 1985. “A few years ago you hardly heard about college graduates taking unpaid internships,"said a vice president at the Economic Policy Institute who has done several studies on interns.“But now I've even heard of people taking unpaid internships after graduating from Ivy League schools." 1 What does the author say about the unpaid internship in the first and second paragraphs? A It helps graduates apply for thrilling jobs. B It helps graduates to bargain about the salary. C It allows graduates to have meaningful programs. D It enables graduates to get better odds of being employed. 2 What does Melissa Reyes describe her internship like, according to the passage? A Serious and valuable. B Arduous but beneficial. C Educational and excellent. D Trivial with no skills required. 3 What are employers supposed to do, according to the passage? A Have interns work without supervision. B Get interns to work as regular employees. C Make interns'work benefit the company immediately. D Provide interns with something like vocational training. 4 Why are interns frequently suffering exploitation by employers? A It has become the“underlying rule”of society. B The law provides no measures to punish employers. C The government has no resources to deal with such cases. D Interns are reluctant to take official action as it may affect their future job prospect. 5 What do we learn about unpaid internships from the passage? A The quality of unpaid internships is good. B More graduates apply for unpaid internships. C Unpaid internships are an isolated phenomenon. D Unpaid internships are crucial for college graduates.