Kate introduced Gus and me last year, and we’ve been friends ever since!
He’s worked with over 500 students since 2023 and is a walking encyclopedia on figuring out your career. I learn something new from him every time we chat.
Not sure why it took me this long to interview him, but here we are.
This time, one thing he said really stood out to me.
“Internships are a privilege.”
I’ve never heard anyone say this out loud.
Look online, attend any course, or ask literally any other career counselor, and they’ll tell you internships are critical for finding your first job.
I’ve always secretly wondered, what if you have bills to pay and can’t afford to spend an entire summer on one? Not every internship pays, or pays enough, especially in the arts & humanities. What then?
I don’t remember hearing a single person saying something like “you’ll be ok, even if you can’t get an internship. There are other ways to get that experience.” In my mind, it was always internships or bust.
Despite starting my own business and creating my own experience, I saw it as “inferior” to internships. I felt lacking, embarrassed even, for not having a single one.
This is not to say you should not do internships, btw. You absolutely should try.
But not everyone can, and that’s okay. You know who you are. Gus gets into exactly what to do if you’re in this position. He goes into detail in this week’s Insiders issue.
PS. First gen? No network? That’s exactly why GradSimple Insiders exists.
