About the Author:

Morgan Koth is a 2011 graduate of the University of Minnesota and summer intern for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Morgan documents her internship and life after college experiences each week in “The Internship Chronicles.” Be sure to connect with her on Twitter: @4goodmn

Hi all! My name is Morgan Elizabeth Koth and I am so glad you stopped by today! I am a graduate of the University of Minnesota – as of just a month ago – and am working to figure out just how life after college works. While the job hunt has been tough, this summer I have been blessed with an amazing opportunity to work as the Community Giving Intern for at the Make-A-Wish Foundation of MN. ‘Community Giving’ is a fancy way of saying ‘Development Intern’—basically, I will be working on fundraising, community relations and other ‘internship’ stuff when needed.

While I tend to see the glass half full, I am little anxious about this summer. The internship, albeit invaluable in terms of experience is unpaid, and for a college grad with student loans this is proving to be extremely stressful. My career counselor at the University of Minnesota told me that this experience at Make-A-Wish is going to open so many doors for me. I am hoping that this internship will equip me with the experience and tools I will need to break into a business-related career.

Enough about the tough stuff…I am so excited about this internship! In the last several years, I have volunteered at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota with kids who have cancer. Nothing brings me more joy than seeing a young person light up with happiness or a feeling of empowerment. Through my internship this summer, my work is enabling young people with chronic or life-threatening diseases to have their greatest wishes granted. Knowing that my work is creating joy, strength and peace in the lives of families dealing with really difficult and sometimes terminal situations is the greatest blessing. If I were getting paid, this really would be the perfect job. Thankfully, I have a part-time nanny job that will start up in a few weeks that will help make things a little easier financially.

The point of this series is really to engage with other interns to better understand how we can get the most out of our experiences.

Have you had experience with an unpaid internship?

What should I be expecting and how can I do the best possible job?