By Tabitha Makumi
Last week I shared with you a story of one lady who was confused over an internship job in a company located along Mombasa road. the job seeker was torn between taking the offer or leaving it since the idea of unpaid internship was not what she had in mind when she got her Bachelors of Arts in Communication Degree from University of Nairobi.
I asked for your opinion and you gladly gave it. Many of you told our torn job seeker to take the opportunity since there are a lot of job seekers out there looking for that opportunity but can’t find it
Some of you told her to leave it for something ‘better’
Well, here is the good, the bad and even the ugly of taking up such a position.
Here is the Good.
1.Unpaid internships make your CV look GOOD
How you ask? This is because you’ve put in a lot of work without being paid to do it. Your only real motivation is yourself, so future employers will love that one single fact. It show them that as a person who is entering the work force you consistently put in a solid chunk of time into a job that isn’t necessarily giving you the same benefits in return. This makes you stand out.
2.You get to make connections
Don’t you doubt it, the kind of connections you make while you are an intern can be of major benefit to you later. But hold it, this will only work if you put effort in your work and only if you are serious about it. It is easy as an intern to be a small fish in a big pond, but if you make yourself heard, you can meet and impress some of the most important people in your industry. Once you have garnered these contacts, it is vital to keep in touch with them as you start job searching.
3.You will get much needed experience
An unpaid internship will definitely allow you to obtain on-the-job experience at a company or in an industry in which you are considering a career.
& Now the bad
1.You don’t get paid. This is a big one……Unless you can afford to work without pay, an unpaid internship may not be practical for you. One way around this drawback is to look for part-time unpaid positions that will allow you to take part-time paid work as well or to seek out paid internships.
2. You get experience but not ‘real’ job experience. True, an unpaid internship may provide some insight into what a paid job would be like, but your interactions with other employees and superiors are unlikely to duplicate that experience. In fact, an unpaid internship even could result in a mistaken impression of the work environment, since an employer’s expectations are very different for an unpaid intern than for a paid employee.
3. Won’t necessarily guarantee quality. A paid internship is more likely to follow through with what they have told you your experiences working there will be like because they are paying you to do that.
On the other hand, if they are not paying you they can switch your responsibilities whenever they want. If you do not like their arrangement you can gladly leave they don’t have the burden that a paid internship has of going through extensive interviews to ensure their money is going to a good person.
In the end, choosing to pursue an unpaid internship is a decision you have to make based on your wants, needs, and abilities
Last week I shared with you a story of one lady who was confused over an internship job in a company located along Mombasa road. the job seeker was torn between taking the offer or leaving it since the idea of unpaid internship was not what she had in mind when she got her Bachelors of Arts in Communication Degree from University of Nairobi.
I asked for your opinion and you gladly gave it. Many of you told our torn job seeker to take the opportunity since there are a lot of job seekers out there looking for that opportunity but can’t find it
Some of you told her to leave it for something ‘better’
Well, here is the good, the bad and even the ugly of taking up such a position.
Here is the Good.
1.Unpaid internships make your CV look GOOD
How you ask? This is because you’ve put in a lot of work without being paid to do it. Your only real motivation is yourself, so future employers will love that one single fact. It show them that as a person who is entering the work force you consistently put in a solid chunk of time into a job that isn’t necessarily giving you the same benefits in return. This makes you stand out.
2.You get to make connections
Don’t you doubt it, the kind of connections you make while you are an intern can be of major benefit to you later. But hold it, this will only work if you put effort in your work and only if you are serious about it. It is easy as an intern to be a small fish in a big pond, but if you make yourself heard, you can meet and impress some of the most important people in your industry. Once you have garnered these contacts, it is vital to keep in touch with them as you start job searching.
3.You will get much needed experience
An unpaid internship will definitely allow you to obtain on-the-job experience at a company or in an industry in which you are considering a career.
& Now the bad
1.You don’t get paid. This is a big one……Unless you can afford to work without pay, an unpaid internship may not be practical for you. One way around this drawback is to look for part-time unpaid positions that will allow you to take part-time paid work as well or to seek out paid internships.
2. You get experience but not ‘real’ job experience. True, an unpaid internship may provide some insight into what a paid job would be like, but your interactions with other employees and superiors are unlikely to duplicate that experience. In fact, an unpaid internship even could result in a mistaken impression of the work environment, since an employer’s expectations are very different for an unpaid intern than for a paid employee.
3. Won’t necessarily guarantee quality. A paid internship is more likely to follow through with what they have told you your experiences working there will be like because they are paying you to do that.
On the other hand, if they are not paying you they can switch your responsibilities whenever they want. If you do not like their arrangement you can gladly leave they don’t have the burden that a paid internship has of going through extensive interviews to ensure their money is going to a good person.
In the end, choosing to pursue an unpaid internship is a decision you have to make based on your wants, needs, and abilities
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