Wednesday, October 24, 2012

CEO position, transportation stipend available

Just got a list email about what sounds like a pretty cool, if not super-glamorous, job, "with a preference to graduate students and recent graduates." 20 hours a week for up to six months. Need to know English and French, and have relevant work experience. The catch? You guessed it: the pay is nothing whatsoever. Not a job in fashion or journalism. At a respected institution.

Surely, one might imagine, a position with so many prerequisites, something beyond entry-level, where the candidates sought are already out of college and may have advanced degrees, wouldn't have too many takers? "Due to the large volume of applications we receive, we are only able to contact those candidates selected for an interview."

Is there - and this is a serious question - any incentive for any employer to offer pay in exchange for work? Or is that being phased out?

5 comments:

  1. Is it in publishing? That's the other major field that seems flooded with people seeking experience.

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  2. Tangentially related to publishing, but more like government/PR. But you correctly identified the "must love books" angle.

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  3. Times are hard if your skills are just in readin' and writin' but not 'rithmetic.

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  4. This in my inbox today made me think of you:

    Unpaid traineeships of 3 ‑ 6 months will be available in the Chambers of Judge Christopher Vajda at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg from 1st February 2013. Applicants should be able to demonstrate knowledge of European Union law, have a reasonable command of French ‑ the ECJ’s working language ‑ and, by the time they take up a traineeship, either hold a law degree or have successfully completed the conversion course.

    In its defense, I've been told that in European bureaucracy, there really is a fairly set path for people to go from elite education to apprenticeship positions to a secure 9-5 job in Brussels or wherever.

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