<p>As someone in a PhD program…I wouldn’t take an unpaid research position during the summer even if it were going to help me gain admission to graduate school. Nobody was supporting me during those summers but me, so I couldn’t afford to take unpaid positions. I managed to get paid research work during the academic year and during the summers; if I hadn’t, I would’ve done something else.</p>
<p>Chaos, I would attempt to look for paid research work during your summers. Assuming that your other costs are covered during your academic year, I would seek out volunteer research positions during the academic year, but personally I do not take unpaid internships anymore unless I have some other source of funding that is going to be covering my living expenses. I simply cannot afford to. (And I’m not saying that no one should - if you have parents or relatives that can afford to pay your living expenses over the summer, go do it.)</p>