The Dreaded Unpaid Internship

When I ask the students I meet with, if they are looking for paid or unpaid internships, most if not all will say, "I would like to be paid, but would take an unpaid." Which is such a different mindset from 5 to even 10 years ago. i do remember as an undergrad taking on 2 unpaid internships but both of them had some sort of commission or stipend that went along with them.
There are many companies that are coming to me and asking if they should pay or not and I am recommending that they at least pay a minimum wage and if they are not looking to pay hourly, then they should pay per protect or some sort of a stipend. This is a case by case basis and as a student you need to evaluate this. Have you had 2 to 3 internships and feel like you should be paid for the next? Is this your first internship? Ask some questions to your self and be realistic. If you do take an unpaid internship, use it to your advantage and know that it is worth a ton on your resume.
I am also seeing many unpaid post graduate internships, which is very odd to say. The great thing that I am seeing is that if you do take an unpaid post grad, most, if not all businesses are hiring these individuals if they can make it. I am not saying it is easy at all but if you put your time in it will pay back.