Working for Nothing: Making it Work for Something

Let’s face it: the economy is still off. For those who have recently graduated from college, this is felt especially viscerally. Many jobs require years of “real world” work experience, and others require advanced degrees—neither of which the recent grad has. If you’re a recent grad and feeling somewhat discouraged by this state of affairs, as I did a year or more ago, then I encourage you to consider volunteering or interning.

Since graduating, I’ve done primarily volunteer and intern work, through AmeriCorps VISTA, here at Portland Magazine, and at Maine Medical Center. What follows is a distillation of what I’ve learned about volunteering/interning:

Warnings: 1) You will work. You will be expected to show up on time, put in your time, and do quality work. 2) Make sure there is a volunteer infrastructure in place for you—in other words, make sure your organization is used to housing volunteers. The one biggest
downside of my AmeriCorps experience was that my host organization, a community health center in Oklahoma City, OK, had never hosted AmeriCorps volunteers; thus, their organization, which was otherwise well run, simply lacked the capacity to adequately guide and support me and my AmeriCorps peers. 3) You will occasionally do menial work (e.g. I have fetched coffee).

Positives: 1) As your superiors don’t have to worry about maximizing your economic output, things are generally more relaxed than paid jobs. Ideally, your actual working peers or supervisors should be more interested in providing an experience for you rather than merely working you to the bone.  2) You get an inside peek at how an organization functions, without constantly having to worry about your performance or about how you fit into the larger structure. You’re not getting paid, the stakes aren’t super high, and you can afford to be an interested observer. 3) You will get some great experience, which can be applicable to “real” jobs.

Neutral comments: 1) Be clear of what you are seeking going into any position. Do you  want a cool experience, or are you in it to bring about a certain goal, whether it be for a future career or for education? 2) Research your company/organization. Is it not-for-profit or for-profit? How large is the staff?

A great example of a local volunteer network is an outfit called Hour Exchange Portland, through which you volunteer work hours and receive work hours in return.  For example, you might be able to walk somebody’s dog. If you are called upon to do so, then you receive one hour of somebody else’s service. There is a database of all services members offer, so you can redeem your earned time with any of these services you’d like. Check them out at www.hourexchangeportland.org!

Finally, volunteering and/or interning beats sitting at home.

–Collin “Biermeister” York