I’m spilling all of the corporate tea in this “Ask Breakroom Buddha” series.
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Short Answer: It depends on which organization you’re working with, what type of work you’ll be doing, and how much time you will be spending on that work.
Today’s all about Navigating Unpaid Internships, aka FREE WORK. Sorry to scream, but I had to alert you before you made the decision to take the bait offer.
This post is for just about anyone who’s contemplating voluntarily breaking their back for 8+ hours, without getting paid. I’m here to tell you that it’s semi-ok, we’ve all dedicated our time to experiences that we thought would open up the floodgates. Some of them are good, others not so much.
What are Unpaid Internships/Work?
Unpaid internships are internships or work that offer you experience without being compensated. The unpaid game has been elevated a little. In most states, it’s illegal to offer unpaid internships without something in exchange. Now, companies offer “college credit.” Personally, I am very selective when it comes to unpaid work. Most of the time if I can not control the type of work that I’m doing, I also avoid them because they always fall a bit flat.
When you have little control over the unpaid internship experience, you run the risk of doing jobs that are completely irrelevant to the actual work you were hired to do. For example, I was hired to be a tv development production summer intern during my sophomore year in college. Sounds cool right?
- False. We turned into personal assistants before the summer was up. One girl became a babysitter another, a lunch gopher.
- One thing we did learn: How to sell the crap out of things that no one wanted. We were cold calling random people and asking them if they needed to update their security systems. Excuse me! How did we turn into security saleswomen?
I digress, just make sure you’re doing your research BEFORE you pack your bags and commit to any unpaid internships. Another piece of advice, I’d never move or make outrageous leaps for an unpaid (or underpaid) experience. Trust me, you’re expectations are always higher than what unpaid internships can deliver. Everyone’s different though, so ultimately the decision will be yours.
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Are Unpaid Internships/Work Really That Bad?
People either love unpaid internships or leave them.
What do I mean by that? I don’t want to sound like a negative Nancy. I’ve had some amazing opportunities that were unpaid. All of the student organizations that I voluntarily participated in during my college years were essentially unpaid internships, and they offered an unmatched amount of experience, as well as connections.
I’ve also had off-campus unpaid internships, but I learned to choose wisely. These unpaid gigs were with respectable organizations that were widely known in my chosen field. This meant that I could leverage the brand name for future employment, where I would… get paid (yep, you guessed it).
I say all of this to say, that I eventually found my way to organizations and causes that I LOVED, and that was a HUGE win for me. I also selected how much time I spent with these organizations. I was spending way less than the required 40 hours a week, which is typical of a full-time job.
On the flip side, if you don’t feel like you’re getting any benefit from a particular experience or organization, then don’t be afraid to LEAVE it.
Unpaid Internships/Work Alternatives
Are you scared? Don’t be. If you can’t afford to spend an extended amount of time working an unpaid internship or you have a limited amount of time, here are some things that you can do to prepare you for your dream job or industry.
Freelancing / Contract Work
Compensation: You choose! Check out this Freelance Rate Calculator if you’re like “IDK what to charge”.
Benefits: Professional connections; tangible work for your portfolio; diversified work; paying clients
Freelancing / Contract Work is where the benjamins start rolling in…kind of. If you’ve already worked on a few projects, and you’re looking to diversify your workload, then freelancing or contract work may be for you. You can find clients on Upwork, Freelancer, Fiverr, and Facebook Groups. Once you’ve found clients that are willing to pay for your expertise, then congrats! You’ve just found the perfect marriage between doing something you love, while also getting paid for it!
Alternatively, you can sign up for local employment agencies, to connect you with large companies that are hiring short term skilled-based contractors. Sometimes, contract roles are posted directly on a company’s website as well. You can find contract roles ranging from creative, technical, to operations. Contract roles open up when teams either don’t have enough funding to make a role full-time or they need an extra set of hands. This sometimes has the potential to become full-time!
Volunteering
Compensation: Unpaid. Sometimes paid with food and free organization swag.
Benefits: Professional connections; mentorship; tangible work for your portfolio
Volunteering is still unpaid, but most of the time you will be working for a purpose or a cause (and not selling security systems!). Normally, when you volunteer, there is a clear start and end time on the work that you’re doing. You can also control how much time you spend with that organization. Unlike a few of the other options, you will also get tangible work experience, and work that you can put in your professional portfolio.
You can use platforms like VolunteerMatch to find reputable projects and non-profits to work with. You can also use Good Deeds Day or DoSomething.org to start your own volunteer project!
Related Read: Here’s a list of virtual volunteer projects you can work on from home
Job Shadowing
Compensation: Unpaid
Benefits: Professional connections; mentorship; hands-on experience; possible paid internship, freelance, or contract work
Job Shadowing happens when a working professional agrees to let you tag along with them for a “day in the life” type of experience. You’ll make a connection (or two), but this is still an unpaid experience. This could, however, lead you to a paid internship or freelance work in the future.
Reach out to professionals on networking platforms like Instagram, Twitter, or Linkedin and ask if you can shadow them.
A good shadowing experience consists of a job seeker:
- Watching a professional work (while also asking insightful questions),
- Sitting in on real business meetings (and taking notes!),
- Having some kind of debrief/ chat about what they’ve learned, what their goals are, and how they plan to get there!
Related Read: A Day in the Life of a Digital Marketing Specialist
Informational Interviews (aka Coffee Chats)
Compensation: Unpaid
Benefits: Professional connections; mentorship; possible paid internship or job shadowing
Informational Interviews (or coffee chats) happen when a working professional agrees to meet with you virtually (like over Skype or Zoom) or in real life ( like over coffee, breakfast, lunch, etc). This experience is still unpaid, but you’ll leave with another type of currency… a professional connection! Keep this connection alive by connecting with them on Linkedin, sending them notes about your career journey, and asking them to job shadow.
Use professional networking platforms like Lunchclub or Linkedin to find other professionals to connect with.
A good Informational Interview is normally a professional casual chat that allows the job seeker to:
- Learn more about what the professional does
- Learn what the industry has to offer
- Learn how you can break into that industry (or company!).
The list goes on and on. In the end, it’s all about your drive and passion, so, be smart kids!
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