Why Volunteer?

When you are building your experience to learn, to make connections, and to add to your resume, you might decide to take some unpaid opportunities.

Some good reasons to accept an unpaid opportunity could be:

It includes training/education you don't currently have.
It involves making an important connection with a mentor or someone who can help in your career.
It could quickly lead to a paid job.
You need to build your portfolio.
You need more recent "experience" for your resume.
The opportunity is short in duration - a few hours or a few days or just a week.
You want to see if you like the company and this is a way to "try it out" before committing to a full-time position.
It's part of your required education in your program of study, you are getting college credit for it, and your instructor tells you its unpaid for all students.

However, be careful about "working for free." If you already have a portfolio ready to show, you need to support yourself, and/or you already have the skills needed to do the project don't work for free. When considering an opportunity, ask yourself, "What do I hope to gain from this?" And feel free to say no if it's not going to help you reach a long-term goal or if you don't want to do it.

How to Say That You Expect to be Compensated for Your Time & Skills (in a professional way):

"Thanks for considering me! Here is a link to my website indicating my services and price packages. Let me know what questions you have. I look forward to working on this project."
"What an exciting project! Are you able to confirm that this is a paid opportunity?"
"I appreciate that you thought of me for this opportunity. Unfortunately, I'm unable to take unpaid projects at this time. Is it possible for you to offer a stipend or some form of compensation?"
"Thanks for reaching out! I generally charge a flat fee for advice on this topic. Would you like to book a consultation with me? I usually charge $XXX for an hour."