Does unpaid work really pay off in the end?

Or: the story of how I was hired for a job I’m hardly qualified for

For the past two or so years I’ve been doing some volunteer work in a field closely related to my dream career. Late last year the small-scale project I’d been working on was finalised and my volunteer role thus ended there.

Last week I had a meeting with the head of the department, sincerely asking if I could be placed into another volunteer role. We spoke at length about my other working experiences and qualifications. I assumed this was just an informal conversation about my interests in so far as which projects I would be best suited to intern on next — for free.

“Actually,” she said, “I was wondering if I could offer you a paid role? It would be on one of my projects.”

It took all that was in me to not pinch myself, or ask if she was joking.

The truth is, as far as qualifications are concerned, I’m certainly not the best candidate for this job. I actually don’t yet have one degree behind me, and this role entails me being paid to help other students to earn a qualification that’s higher than what I’ll have graduated with by the end of the year.

So if I’m not academically qualified… what do I have?

I’ve written before about the importance of work experience: this is two-fold, as not only do I know how to do the work, I also know whether or not I actually like it. I’m also now experienced in this field for roughly two years. I may not have the proper qualification behind me, but I’ve worked hard enough that it doesn’t really matter.

This period of work experience also (unwittingly) provided me with a network.

First off, people love it when you think highly enough of them to ask for their mentorship. It’s a huge compliment for them. So from day dot, I was already in my mentor’s good books. Secondly, by working with him for such a long time — and at no cost to him — I proved myself as a capable and driven worker, and now I have a reference for that.

It goes without saying really, but the final thing I have that I don’t need a qualification for is genuine passion.

I would literally do this job for free.

So yes, it’s a cliché, but it’s true: there’s not much you can’t do with a combination of hard work and real passion.

Of course, not every internship or volunteer opportunity will give you this exact result. But at the end of the day, it’s still another tick on your resume for any future employer — one that says:

I’m capable, I’m hardworking, I know what I like, and I will win you over.