Internship scams are on the rise, with many companies taking advantage of students’ need for experience. Younity, an Indian edtech startup, offers a popular virtual internship program but has faced allegations of being an MLM scam. This article investigates if Younity’s internship is genuine or a fraud.
Younity provides online courses focused on skills like digital marketing, finance, personality development etc. It also offers a 14-30 day virtual internship program for students. Younity claims to have trained 48,000+ learners and provided internships to thousands of students.
However, many reviewers have called the internship program a scam that indulges in multi-level marketing tactics. So what is the truth? Let’s analyze the facts.
What Exactly Does Younity’s Internship Program Offer?
Younity’s internship opportunities are remote and focus on business development, sales, marketing and research profiles. As per the program details:
- It is a 14 day work from home internship with flexible 2-3 hours per day.
- Perks offered include Younity certificates, potential stipend income, career guidance, personality development sessions etc.
- Interns are required to market Younity courses to their contacts as part of sales/BD responsibilities.
- Interns can also earn commission on course sales they facilitate.
The program seems to rely heavily on leveraging an intern’s personal network to promote and sell Younity’s courses. Is this appropriate or ethical?
Younity Internship User Reviews & Complaints
So, How Do Interns Rate Their Younity Experience?
Reviews of Younity’s internship program are mixed, with some praising it as great learning but many others calling it a scam.
Positive Experiences
Some interns report gaining valuable skills in marketing, communication, leadership etc. They highlight benefits like stipends, certificates, career growth and guidance.
A few say the sales experience helped improve their confidence and develop business skills applicable in corporate roles. Some share they got jobs/placements due to Younity’s career coaching.
Negative Experiences
However, numerous critics allege the internship involves little real learning and is focused solely on selling courses. Many say it resembles an MLM scam.
Issues highlighted include lack of support, delays in stipends, subpar course quality, meaningless tasks, a toxic culture and manipulative founder.
There are also concerns of fake reviews and ratings created by making interns write positive posts.
What Do Younity’s Founder and Employees Say?
Younity’s founder Prafful Garg positions the internship as an opportunity to build marketing and communication skills via sales. But does this justify the program’s methods?
While some employees defend the program, others have confessed it is primarily a sales engine. An ex-employee called most of Younity’s revenue being generated by interns concerning. They also highlighted that founder just created some cheap courses and they try to sell it from which student will learn nothing.
Is Younity Breaking Any Laws With Its Internship Program?
While internships asking students to sell products to family and friends are not illegal by itself, they walk an ethical grey area.
Issues like promised stipends not being paid, false claims made to interns, lack of learning or growth could be potential grounds for investigation by regulatory authorities.
Students being made to share contacts or post fake reviews also raise privacy and misrepresentation concerns. But more evidence may be needed to prosecute such charges.
What Precautions Should Students Take Before Joining Younity’s Internship?
If considering Younity’s internship program, students should take these precautions:
- Verify certificates are legit and offered unconditionally before marketing courses.
- Thoroughly research the quality of courses being sold and testimonials given.
- Ask for full details on stipend calculations, payment proofs, tasks etc.
- Be wary of inflated claims around skills gained, career impact etc.
- Don’t share personal contacts without consent and explain program’s sales focused nature.
- Read the fine print and enquire about Your rights, data privacy etc. as an intern.
Are All Virtual Internships Sales-Focused Like Younity’s Program?
While uncommon, some other virtual internships also have sales or marketing duties involving outreach to the intern’s contacts. For instance, the infamous Smart Internz faced similar allegations.
However, most legitimate virtual internships focus on meaningful projects, learning outcomes and career growth. Programs by reputed companies like JP Morgan, Deloitte, PwC etc. tend to provide great value.
Students should research thoroughly before joining any virtual internship programs. While platforms like Internshala and LinkedIn internships can help identify credible openings.
Can Students Derive Any Benefit From Younity’s Program?
While critics have raised major concerns, few students claim to have gained some skills in communication, sales etc. from Younity.
If treated as a very short sales role rather than a true internship, joining the program may provide limited career experience to some.
But the quality depends heavily on one’s team and mentor. And if stipends don’t materialize, the effort may be better spent elsewhere.
Is Younity’s Internship Ultimately Worth It for Students?
Given the high risk of the program being a scam, any benefits seem outweighed for most students, beyond maybe short-term financial incentives.
With numerous red flags around lack of learning, unethical practices, subpar courses and alleged fake marketing, students should be wary of joining Younity’s virtual internship.
While the program may aid soft skills for some, it does not seem like an advisable internship experience for advancing one’s career. Younity’s numerous negative reviews and concerning allegations make it a high-risk choice that is best avoided by most students who have better virtual internship options.
The Verdict: Younity Internship Program Real or Fake?
In summary, Younity’s internship program appears to have some serious issues and risks that students should carefully evaluate before joining.
While being legal, the sales-heavy structure and multi-level marketing approach are concerning and unethical. The many scathing reviews and allegations around the program’s quality, founder behavior, stipends and marketing also raise red flags.
Still, a small subset of students claims to have benefited from improving soft skills, earning incentive income and gaining sales ability. So while the program may offer some career value for some, overall it seems like an internship best avoided for the vast majority of students.
Proceed with extreme caution, do thorough research and focus on more credible virtual internship opportunities as much as possible.
Frequently Aksed Questions (FAQs)
1. Is Younity’s internship program fake or real?
Opinions are mixed. Some say it provides a real sales experience, but many allege it is a fake internship focused solely on promoting Younity’s courses. As per some students review, Many positive reviews are alleged to be fake and created by interns as “tasks.”
2. What kind of tasks will I have to do as a Younity intern?
The internship heavily focuses on sales and business development activities. This includes promoting Younity’s courses in your network and trying to make sales. A few users highlighted that other tasks like managing social media, writing reviews etc. can also be assigned.
3. Is Younity running an MLM scam in the name of internships?
Numerous reviews have accused Younity of using multi-level marketing tactics and pressuring interns to sell courses to friends and family. However, the company denies these allegations.
4. What skills can I gain from doing Younity’s internship?
Some reviewers mention gaining soft skills in marketing, communication, confidence etc. However, many say there is no real learning involved beyond sales abilities. Manage your expectations accordingly.
