Boost your CV with unpaid projects
Showing off a piece of paper stating that you now have an academic degree is very often not enough to get you into the labour market. Relevant work experience is also a big plus in employers' book. But jobs that are relevant to your studies don't exactly hang on trees, and time is precious when you’re a full-time student.
This is a dilemma that four AU students are attempting to solve with KARRIERESTARTER (Career Starter in English). It’s a portal that matches students with companies, which companies can use to find students to undertake specific projects.
The students are not paid for their work, but they can add relevant work experience to their CV, while the companies are obliged to give the students written feedback as documentation for the work performed.
Experience is the driving factor
"We did a survey among students where we asked what was most important for students when looking for student jobs – salary or work experience. Our survey showed that work experience is the driving factor. So we thought: I wonder if more companies would offer more projects, if we took the question of salary out of the equation? Now it’s a win-win situation for both students and companies," explains Martin Andersen, one of the four students behind the portal. He is studying an MSc in business administration and IT at AU.
The matchmaking process is slowly gathering momentum and at the time of writing, 30 projects have been posted on the platform since KARRIERESTARTER was launched on 1 July.
KARRIERESTARTER is part of the Student Incubator.
- Read more: Karrierestarter.dk (in Danish)
Translated by Peter Lambourne