<p>I am a college sophomore planning to intern for this summer. I plan to go to business school later. </p>
<p>I have the choice either to work at a paying company or an unpaying company. The unpaying company is more attractive because it is located in my home country, and the paid internship is located in a foreign country. </p>
<p>If I could choose between the two, which would look better on my resume? Paid or unpaid? The type of work and everything else is similar. Both are pretty big companies. Actually the unpaying company might end of being LG Electronics.</p>
<p>alright -- so here's what i know about unpaid vs. paid internships. My older brother last year worked for Montsano - the large farm product engineering firm - and he got paid about 10,000 dollars for the summer. (Not counting the fact he had to pay for rent and such.) However, the issue with this is that, if you come form a family that looks at FAFSA for aid, then you are wiser to NOT get a paid one. The money he earned was counted against him, i think it's something like 20 cents to every dollar after 2700 dollars, and he ended up getting a FAFSA back the following year saying he had to pay more. The issue was that he couldn't afford to pay what the asked him to bc a quarter of the money was spent on housing/food/clothing while he worked in the summer, and then he paid off his first stafford loan. So he had to take out another loan because of it. </p>
<p>I hope that made sense, but from what I've heard at many other colleges, is that taking an unpaid position is just as beneficial as a paid. You won't have to worry about the rise in EFC for you and such. However, if you are not one to need to worry about such a thing as EFC/LOANS/FAFSA..than by all means go for the paid!</p>
<p>also -- companies dont look at if it was unpaid or paid, when hiring out of college. From talking with my boss (i work at a law firm), he said its more of how you effectively represent what you did (wording and such) on your resume....what job is better for you to go into or has more opportunities for you to display when you go job hunting later on...LG on my list is a VERY nice internship....but it's personally about which company will give you more experience for your future career, not which pays and which doesn't...</p>
<p>Employers definitely value unpaid internships if it's related to your future career goals. Many places offer academic credit (another plus) for unpaid internships.</p>
<p>If you aren't concerned about money either way (I don't know which would work out in your favor given you have to relocate for the paid one) then go for whichever one you think will give you more responsibility or difficult assignments. Don't do the unpaid one only because you think you'll get a boost because the employer thinks you're willing to sacrifice money for the pleasure of your field, I don't see how they would know it was unpaid anyways unless you told them, which really looks like you're fishing for karma in my mind. </p>
<p>Go for whichever one makes more sense. If you're doing the same work at either one, then which one leaves you less in the hole money wise? Do you care sacrificing money to stay in the country, maybe near family/friends? Also consider RMS39's point about financial aid.</p>