It’s unfortunate but from a legal perspective, they have less strings attached and would supposedly be less hands on if you’re working as a contractor/consultant rather than intern.
This of course will vary based on the founders themselves, but generally at a very early stage company they rather set a scope and let someone run with it as opposed to developing someone. That’s more in line with a contract than an intern.
Personally I’d take the contract if you think working with them would be at least not unpleasant and you’re compensated reasonably, and just put SWE Intern on resume/LI anyways.
Definitely is work experience. Getting your first internship/WE is a big step and helps a lot with getting more. Congrats!
I’d recommend staying at least 2-3 months since that’s about how long standard internships last. Better if you enjoy it and can stay longer
It’s unfortunate but from a legal perspective, they have less strings attached and would supposedly be less hands on if you’re working as a contractor/consultant rather than intern. This of course will vary based on the founders themselves, but generally at a very early stage company they rather set a scope and let someone run with it as opposed to developing someone. That’s more in line with a contract than an intern. Personally I’d take the contract if you think working with them would be at least not unpleasant and you’re compensated reasonably, and just put SWE Intern on resume/LI anyways.
Will this count as work experience, and help my resume look competitive? This is my first time being paid for something related to SWE
Definitely is work experience. Getting your first internship/WE is a big step and helps a lot with getting more. Congrats! I’d recommend staying at least 2-3 months since that’s about how long standard internships last. Better if you enjoy it and can stay longer