Yes, interesting discussion, and one of my favourites. I like a lot of what DeepSeaDan says, particularly about the real learning begins once you're on the job. That's not exact, of course, but I get the point--having experienced this both as a teacher and now a DM. Of course there is a lot of necessary "studying" and practicing if you will, before you can get to the job to start to really learn. Another point made was about "schlepping tanks 101" not being a really big "learning" part of the course--much like hauling music stands not contributing much to teaching Band. Then there is the discussion of paying tuition, or paying for training -- as opposed to (companies) at times paying people WHILE they train (guess they assume the potential employee will bring more value to the company). I have read that some of these Internships are a couple of weeks while others are way longer. It seems hard to compare which is right-- or more "fair'-- unless you calculate all the hours vs. wages or fees. It's also hard to start comparing professions. What do they pay minor leaguers who hopefully get to the Majors and make how much? So, you sign up for a DM course and you get what you sign up for-- read the fine print. Once you GET the job the pay is at best minimum wage (unless you do a lot of other stuff besides actually DMing), and we all know many DMs do the job for perks only (another topic). I paid a certain amount for the course. I did the academic and practical learning part and we audited a couple of classes, helping out sparingly. Plus the rest of the "components" as they say, and I think we hauled a few tanks. There are all kinds of ways to look at it, but it has to work for you.