successful people got their start with unpaid internships<\/a>.<\/p>\nThe pros and cons to consider if you\u2019re wondering if it’s worth it:<\/h2>\nPros of an unpaid internship:<\/h2>\nYou\u2019ll get greater consideration for full-time jobs<\/h3>\n
First and foremost, an internship (unpaid or not) gives you an edge. Your impressive resume will more likely get you hired than someone who has never had an internship. It shows you are dedicated and a hard worker.<\/p>\n
It’s all about experience<\/h3>\n
They say you can learn as much as you want in school, but nothing beats a classroom in the \u201creal world\u201d. Whether learning how to use Photoshop, observing how to talk to clients, attend meetings or how to win a campaign, there\u2019s no better way to learn how things work than just doing it. Plus, you\u2019ll have a story to tell a future employer about your experience in the trenches.<\/p>\n
![\"Testing-the-waters-with-an-unpaid-internship\"](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Testing-the-waters-with-an-unpaid-internship.jpg\")
<\/h3>\nYou get to test the waters<\/h3>\n
The great thing about internships is they\u2019re not forever. You get to test the waters. Let\u2019s say you have your heart set on being a political news reporter, but found the late night hours and demanding schedule to be too much, so maybe you want to pursue something else. It gives you a front and center seat to see what that career (or company) might look like.<\/p>\n
You’ll meet amazing people<\/h3>\n
OK \u2013 if you\u2019re sick of hearing the word \u2018network\u2019 how about we use the term, \u2018meeting people\u2019 instead? Having a boss, co-workers and co-interns who can vouch for you or introduce you to a higher-up if you\u2019re trying to get another job down the road can make a big difference. Or, perhaps, they love you so much they want to hire you full-time. You just never know\u2026<\/p>\n
A big name will pay for itself<\/h3>\n
Some big names, like media companies or political campaigns, may not have the budget for paid internships. But you\u2019re paying for a well known name to forever be blasted on your resume. Case in point: I took a 3-month internship with Shape Magazine. I didn\u2019t get paid, but I can still, to this day, say that I worked for Shape<\/em> Magazine \u2013 and most everyone in the editorial industry knows who that is.<\/p>\nThose 3 months paid for themselves 10-fold in landing other jobs.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
![\"Pros-and-cons-of-unpaid-internships\"](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Pros-and-cons-of-unpaid-internships.jpg\")
<\/h2>\nCons of an unpaid internship<\/h2>\nYou don\u2019t get paid, obviously<\/h3>\n
But, if you think about it as training, it’s a good deal. Like olden day apprenticeships, you\u2019re not paying a dime for education in your career field. However, usually interns are students. Which means they\u2019re already spending tons of money going to school, trying to have a life, and probably working a part-time job somewhere else too. In this way, internships can seem like a time-suck.<\/p>\n
You might feel taken advantage of if you\u2019re spending your quality time without pay. If you\u2019re hurting for money, a paid internship may be a better option.<\/p>\n
If you are not paid, make sure you get college credit for your time there and a solid reference. That would make it worth it.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
It actually costs you money<\/h3>\n
If you work for free, you will have expenses for commuting, meals and clothes. You will need support from your family to be able to pay your own way.<\/p>\n
The legality of no pay can be a gray area<\/h3>\n
According to The Fiscal Times<\/em>, the U.S. Department of Labor says your employer needs to be paying you at least minimum wage. But, if they don\u2019t consider you an employee, it\u2019s free game.<\/p>\nIt doesn\u2019t necessarily mean you\u2019ll get paid more later<\/h3>\n
The National Association of Colleges and Employers conducted a survey that concluded 63% of paid interns were offered a job after graduation, while only 37% of unpaid interns were offered one.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Unpaid-Internships-pros-and-cons\"](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Unpaid-Internships-pros-and-cons.jpg\")
<\/h3>\nHere\u2019s what you need to know:<\/h3>\n
In order for an unpaid internship to be legal, it needs to be an educational experience with more of a mentor\/mentee relationship than a boss\/employee one. Here is the 6 criteria that need to be met according to the U.S. Department of Labors\u2019 Wage and Hour Division:<\/p>\n
\n- The internship, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to training that would be given in an educational environment.<\/li>\n
- The internship experience is for the benefit of the intern.<\/li>\n
- The intern doesn\u2019t displace regular employees, but works under close supervision of existing staff.<\/li>\n
- The employer that provides the training derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the intern and on occasion its operations may be impeded.<\/li>\n
- The intern isn\u2019t necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the internship.<\/li>\n
- The employer and the intern understand that the intern is not entitled to wages for the time spent in the internship.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Bottom line: use your own judgment.<\/h3>\n
Weigh your options. Will the extra work pay off in the end? Having 1 or 2 unpaid internships under your belt may be your ticket to a paid one.<\/p>\n
There are lots of reasons why an unpaid internship is worth it. Everyone has had to pay their dues (look at Oprah, Steve Jobs and Steven Spielberg\u2026)<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Today, unpaid internships have become a bit controversial. With minimum wage, the cost of education and student loans rising, working for free presents challenges, particularly when the intern is just running errands and getting coffee. Are unpaid internships worth it? Internships originated in the era of craftsmanship with what was called \u201capprenticeship\u201d. An apprentice exchanged […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8883,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18,43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-employment-tips","category-internship-tips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5674\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Internships](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Are-Unpaid-Internships-worth-it.jpg\")
<\/h2>\n