No one should ever enter into an arrangement that isn’t beneficial to them. This includes working for free. However, I think that “working for experience” has been conflated with “working for free” inappropriately. Working for experience can be extremely beneficial in ways that aren’t monetary and open doors to new opportunities that you wouldn’t get otherwise.
I graduated from college with a degree in Creative Writing with a focus on Non-fiction. While going to school, I worked a number of different jobs, including debt collector, graveyard shift hotel front desk, and 411 operator. And, of course, I waited tables. So, after graduating (and discovering that my dream of being the next great American novelist wasn’t going to pan out), I looked for a job where I could make good use of my writing skills. Unfortunately, the only professional work experience I had was in customer service. I ended up back in the call center; this time I was providing online tech support for a large bank.
Nevertheless, I continued applying for writing positions, but everyone wanted someone with experience. I remember applying for a restaurant review writer at a local newspaper. They were looking for someone with experience in different kinds of restaurants, ranging from family to fine dining. They referenced knowledge of foie gras as an ad hoc litmus test except the newspaper misspelled it in their job ad.
When I saw this listing, I responded, but this was during a time when I was knee-deep in rejection letters from Hollywood agents, and my impulse control was wearing thin. So, my reply was a little snarky, correcting them on their error and explaining why they needed me, considering my bevy of restaurant experience that fit their requirements. I wasn’t expecting a reply, but lo and behold! They contacted me the next day. I rejoiced, thinking that the answer to my problems was to simply unleash my personality.
“Authenticity,” I thought. “That’s what people want.”
Perhaps that’s true and what got me the callback, but it’s experience that determined if I got the job or not. The paper patched me through to the hiring manager. I was on hold for a few minutes, which meant that this person was looking at my résumé for the first time. When she finally got on the phone I could tell it wasn’t going to go well for me. She was pleasant enough, but the conversation boiled down to one sentence:
“I’m just not seeing enough writing experience.”
Which was true. At that point, my résumé had zero professional writing positions listed. So, I made up my mind to start writing for experience just to build a portfolio. I hopped on Craigslist and found several publications that needed contributors, so I applied. Doing so opened more doors for me than I could have imagined. Within a year I had gone from guy-in-a-call-center to bar/restaurant reviewer to movie reviewer to sitting in front of Wes Craven, Rachel McAdams, Mark Ruffalo, and Reese Witherspoon and having them answer my questions. Granted, I hadn’t earned a single cent for doing any of this, but this experience made me attractive to publications that paid.
On the day job side, I was able to point prospective employers to my writing experience which acted as the bridge to transition from customer service to marketing. At no point did I feel exploited. Writing for experience is directly responsible for the career I have now and the one-of-a-kind experiences that I’ll never forget.
All of this is to say that not every employer who only pays in experience is a predator. And even if you view them as such, that doesn’t mean you can’t still benefit. Just make sure the experience you’re getting is valuable and that you have a goal toward which you can apply that experience.