For many ambitious students, acquiring international experience, whether through internships or volunteering programs, is viewed as a crucial step towards a successful career. Such experiences are highly valuable for getting scholarships or employment opportunities around the world.
However, alongside legitimate programs, there is a growing number of fake internships and fraudulent volunteer opportunities actively targeting young people. These are not merely bad opportunities, they might be sophisticated financial and immigration scams designed to steal money, personal data, and sometimes, a student’s future prospects. These scammers exploit students’ ambitions, and their limited experience with international systems.
This article provides an overview of how these scams work, real examples, tips and practical solutions to help students protect themselves.
Understanding the scam mechanism
Scammer operating in the education and employment sectors make use of two powerful motivators: ambition and urgency. They understand that young people are often under pressure to secure a place to obtain a degree or gain a competitive advantage in the job market.
Typically, scammers create an illusion of exclusivity and prestige. They utilize professionally designed websites, use official-sounding language, and sometimes even claim false affiliations with reputable universities or international bodies (like the UN or well-known multinational corporations). More about scams, you can find in our previously posted article Scams in your DMs: how frauders use Instagram, TikTok, and Telegram to target students
Common examples of “International Experience” scams
- “Fee-Based Placement Schemes” – this is one of the most common traps. Students usually get approach through different groups and channels (often via social media platforms like LinkedIn, Telegram, or Instagram) with an offer for “guaranteed” internship at a prestigious company.
- The “Visa Guarantee” Volunteering Scheme – these scams target students looking for gap-year experiences or humanitarian work, often combined with language learning. They promise a simple path to a long-term student or work visa in countries with strict immigration policies (such as the USA, Canada, or the UK) in exchange for volunteering. Additionally, they claim that their organization has special agreements with embassies to bypass standard visa requirements.
Remember: No private organization can guarantee a visa. Only government embassies have that authority. Students who pay often receive invalid documents that lead to visa rejections and a permanent mark on their immigration record.
- Work-from-home frauds: in this case, scammers usually require to pay for the specialized training. After completion, students do not get any kind of employment or internship. For example, an internship posted as “Remote QA Internship” requires to buy a course on this programme and get a certificate. In the end, the internship was non-existent.
Practical solutions and protective measures
So, what can we do to protect ourselves?
- First of all, it’s very important to verify the organization. Never rely solely on the information provided by the recruiter. If an agency claims they are placing you at “Company X” in Germany, find the official website of “Company X,” find out their HR department’s contact information, and email them to ask if they have a relationship with that specific agency.
- Check official registries. Legitimate universities are listed in national education ministry databases. Legitimate companies have business registrations. If it is a volunteering charity, look them up on charity commission websites in their home country. If they do not exist in official records, they are not legitimate.
- Use reliable sources. You can reach out to the professors, university career centers or alumni from an institution who have genuinely studied or worked abroad. They can often recommend reputable programs and identify suspicious ones.
- Research the costs of real, paid opportunities. There are paid legitimate programmes that do charge fees to cover different expenses. However, these organizations are transparent and show all the details on the official websites.
To conclude, your desire to gain international experience is a valuable asset that should be developed, not exploited for personal gain. The digital world opens doors to global opportunities, but at the same time requires increased digital literacy and skepticism. By learning to recognize the mechanisms of these scam schemes and carefully verifying information, you can protect your finances and your future, ensuring yourself a genuine and fruitful path to international education.
Stay informed, stay cautious, and verify everything.
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Sources:
https://cyberpeace.org/resources/blogs/internship-scams-exposing-financial-frauds-targeting-students
https://www.internsinasia.com/blog/how-to-spot-fake-internships
https://au.prosple.com/applying/job-internship-scams-why-youre-at-risk-what-you-can-do
Our article:
https://okajak.com/en/articles/scams-in-your-dms-how-frauders-use-instagram-tiktok-and-telegram-to-target-students/
Available scholarship opportunities: https://okajak.com/en/scholarship/