6:55 p.m. EDT October 21, 2013 In the space between headline-making speeches and the hushed strategy meetings of debate preparation are phone calls, pamphlets and lawn signs — errands of the unpaid college student.

Election after election, students — some fueled by passion, others by career ambitions — turn out to help.  It's those voluntary hours spent canvassing and preparing for events that often launch students into full-time jobs, says Christina Greer, a political science professor at Fordham University in New York.

"College students are being very strategic, hoping that these chances will turn into something more than just a volunteer internship opportunity," Greer says.

Greer says that an increasingly large number of upper-level campaign staffers are former interns and come from a background in which unpaid work was offset by help from family.

"What I've seen over the years is that once college students graduate, those who have more resources can move to a particular state or city, stay with friends, not get paid anything and work tirelessly," she says. "And if their candidate wins, they oftentimes can get a pretty nice job within the elected official's office."

But for some, pay trumps free campaign experience.

"Even though it's great political work, if you come from a family that is not independently wealthy, working on a campaign often times isn't an option," Greer says.

A similar idea was brought up earlier this year, within the context of the journalism industry, by David Dennis, a contributor for The Guardian, in a piece titled: "Unpaid internships and a culture of privilege are ruining journalism."

Collin Fedor, a junior receiving financial aid at Boston College, works a part-time job and interns for Democrat Marty Walsh's mayoral campaign in Boston whenever he has some spare time.

"I have to say that it's tough to find a paid internship on a political campaign," Fedor says.

But he's optimistic about the options available to students with financial concerns, looking to break into politics.

"While internships may be unpaid from the campaign or political office, there are opportunities for outside funding, such as grants from the student's university or various other groups," he says.

Fedor has worked on a few national campaigns in the past, but he says it's the local elections that allow him to feel as if he's making an impact.

"When I'm out talking to voters, they have very specific questions on issues that affect their day-to-day lives, which are directly affected by who's in office," he said.

On the other side of Boston, Conor Finley, a senior at Suffolk University and president of the on-campus College Democrats club, is working on the mayoral campaign of Democrat John Connolly. It's Finley's passion that drives him.

"I got involved in this election because I deeply care about this city and the direction that it's going to head in," he says. "I want to do anything and everything I can to make sure John Connolly is the next mayor — from phone banking, door-to-door canvassing, or holding signs for visibility. Every little amount counts."

James Demetriades, a junior at Fordham University, worked on the mayoral campaign of Democrat Christine Quinn in New York City during the primaries. He says that working on a campaign — even if there is no career ambition attached — can be an interesting way to view the political process.

"[Interning] gives students a different perspective on the way that politics works, but at the same time, it's a completely different environment between canvassing and working in an office," he says.

Greer agrees. She encourages her students to get involved in campaigns and says that despite a particular student's background, everyone has something to contribute.

"Someone who's from a very poor or working-class community, they could work on a campaign and see things that they've never seen before from across the river," she says. "Whereas, you can take wealthy people that are volunteering for a campaign, and they can see communities that are down the street from their homes that they never knew existed."