Unpaid internships are unfair, unjust, and yet still somehow the only path to a job for many college students and young professionals. While great organizations like Pay Our Interns advocate for fair wages for those on the lowest rung, the sad reality is that far too many organizations, progressive groups included, still don’t pay interns—or if they do, offer a small stipend or minimum wage. Far too many young people look at internships and conclude they simply can’t afford it.
But this need not always be the case. There are plenty of ways to make internships work, even if you’re on a tight budget. It certainly isn’t easy, but Blue Tent is here to help, with six tips for doing what you’ve gotta do to build your resume without breaking the bank.
1. Grants, scholarships and stipends
The easiest solution to an unpaid or barely paid internship is to find money from another source. If you’re in school, there’s a good chance your university has some sort of internship fund, especially for public interest work. Search online and talk with administration, from the career services office to the department of your major; political science and public policy programs often have special grants for students interning in government or nonprofits.
Your school isn’t the only place you should look for resources. Pay Our Interns runs an intern relief fund, giving grants of $150 to $1,500. Websites like Grants for Individuals and SPIN have databases of grants, while Scholarships.com and FastWeb provide the same for scholarships and financial aid. Local organizations like Rotary clubs, chambers of commerce and other nonprofits can also offer funds for students. Finally, if you’ve already secured an internship, don’t be afraid to reach out to the organization that hired you to see if they have any internal funding to help you out. You are about to work for them for little or no money, after all; it’s literally the least they could do.
2. Splitting your time
Another option for making internships work is to split your time, whether it’s working half the summer in a paid job where you save the money to float yourself for the other half of your internship, or working part-time. Some potential employers will offer programs that schedule you to intern two or three days a week, allowing you to work the other days and make some money to get by. Your budget will be tight, but others have done it before. Interning full time and working on the weekends is less advisable, as you’ll have virtually no free time, but we’d be lying if we said it couldn’t be done. Just keep your health in mind.
And to be clear, this isn’t an either/or—you should be seeking outside funding, even if you keep a part-time job. Just make sure you’re striking the balance you need between getting good experience and making enough money to eat and pay rent.
3. Saving on housing
Speaking of rent, housing is likely to be your single highest expense during your internship. If you can work locally (or remotely) and live with your parents, relatives or friends for free or reduced rent, your wallet will thank you. It won’t be quite the same experience some of your wealthier peers get, but just remember that you’re making things work for a better payoff down the road. On that same note, this won’t be the time to be picky about housing or roommates. You may need to spend a couple of months sharing a bedroom, dorm-style, with another intern trying to squeeze by. Just try to keep in mind it’s only for a short time, and it’s serving a greater good.
4. School programs
Just as most colleges offer internship funds of some sort, many schools also run programs for students to intern during the year or in the summer. This can take any of several forms, including a part-time internship for class credit during the school year, which would allow you to keep up your regular schedule and budget. Many schools also run immersive, study-abroad-style, full-time internship programs in places like Washington, D.C., placing you in housing with other interns and assisting with job placement, networking and getting the most out of your experience. These programs can be outwardly pricey, but also often come with scholarships and grants (some more extensive than the general internship funds from the school), and it is possible they could be covered as part of your regular tuition.
5. Keep a budget
When getting by on a budget, you’ll need to, well, keep an actual budget. Whether you’re trying to space out scholarship money or make your part-time job pay for groceries, unless you’re a numbers savant, you’ll need to write things down. Websites like Mint offer free templates, or if you’re a data whiz, you can just plug things into Excel or Google Sheets yourself. Make a plan before you start and track your spending tirelessly. It may be a myth that skipping your daily Starbucks will help you buy a house one day, but cutting out small, regular expenses can actually add up over time and save you from running out of cash before your internship ends.
6. Don’t get exploited
Unpaid internships are absolutely a travesty, but sadly, that travesty is something many of us need to get real jobs. We all make sacrifices, but don’t let yourself be taken advantage of. Your bosses don’t get to overwork you, and you deserve to get real experience and mentorship. Don’t be afraid to turn down extra work when you’re feeling overburdened, and make sure to set expectations early with your supervisor, including letting them know what you’re doing outside of the office to make things work. Especially in the progressive world, they should understand that.
Oh, and if you ask your potential employer for funding or extra help and they respond by sending you this or another article on getting by without pay, definitely don’t work there.