There's a huge college level divide between knowing and pursuing what you want in life, and getting there.

Just getting out of here with your degree or even a 4.0 doesn't guarantee anything in terms of your future. The minute you have your hands on that piece of paper, you've accomplished one milestone but there's a whole new struggle right up ahead.

It's the greatest paradox of all time. Jobs don't want you if you don't have experience, and you can't get experience without getting a job.

Where does that leave college students?

That's where we enter the realm of unpaid internships.

From being a coffee lackey to spending hours of unrewarded time for menial tasks. Internships that are unpaid hold a special place in my mind as an offshoot of hell. They're incredibly important for anyone in his or her field to learn and gain credibility. They're important for future references for any higher level jobs. But they're also mind-blowingly tedious and unfair.

If you're lucky, you may stray into the more mythical world of paid internships and if you find yourself there, count yourself lucky.

But despite how unfair and time-consuming an internship can be, they are, ultimately, an amazing step in the right direction. By participating in an internship at any level in college, you are basically choosing to be a part of something bigger than yourself and get involved. While it may not seem like a lot in the moment, something like that is noticed and can get you the connections and references you need to thrive later in life.

So even if you may spend your summer delivering coffee, keep your chin up! You're delivering yourself to a whole new kind of future.