In a world where poorly paid or unpaid internships are the only way to get a foothold in many industries, they're a rite of passage many of us have had to suffer.

Yet no matter what kind of office you interned in, there are certain universal experiences we all faced. 

Things like...

1. You bring a lunchbox to work everyday

Not because you're sensible or anything, you're just broke as shit.

2. A tedious or difficult task is mentioned in a meeting, and you patiently wait for it to be assigned to you

"This one feels like a job for the intern".

3. You may have had a name once, but you shall now be known as 'the intern'

At least when actual, honest-to-God paid workers think you're out of earshot. 

4. You slowly come to the realisation that you're glorified slave labour

But you console yourself with the knowledge that it's all valuable experience. Unless you actually realise that this is not the industry you want to be in, in that case this whole thing was a huge waste of your time and effort.

5. When you're not being treated like a dogsbody, you'll be treated like a nuisance 

It ain't easy thinking up tasks for the intern to do, y'know, because...

6. When there's no actual work for you to do they'll give you a ridiculous task

"We're probably low on milk, so you might wanna pick some up."

7. Your coffee making skills improve

As does your ability to go to the coffeeshop and buy a bevy of hot bevies. This is, however, a vital learning experience, improving both your memory and carrying skills. 

After all, you can't truly call yourself an intern until you've experienced the cliché.

8. You and your fellow interns have a bond forged by hardship

You're all in this together, dammit. To the bitter end.

9. You try to balance out the shit pay by loading up on free stuff

Office pizza, eh? Well hello tonight's dinner.

10. You think about just walking out that door a lot

You've imagined the scenarios a dozen times, uttering those sweet words... 

11. As you're about to leave they do show their appreciation for all that hard work though – usually with an incredibly underwhelming gift

Six months solid effort for a novelty mug and a box of chocolates? Worth it.

Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments.

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