A Kennesaw State alumnus is currently beta testing a new website, which allows students to compete for paid projects that small businesses offer on both of KSU’s campuses.
Keith Hudson, KSU alumnus and founder of this new business and website, said BRAINbait is a way to connect students and small businesses by letting students get hands-on experience in completing and getting paid for products and tasks that businesses need.
Hudson said the website operates on a simple four-step process:
- A business posts a description of a project they need and a set price they will pay for a completed project.
- Interested students compete for the payment by completing the project and submitting screenshots of their work.
- The business selects a winner and pays the student directly for his or her work.
- The winning student releases the full project or original files to the business after payment.
“The primary goal of my website is to give students the opportunity to gain real work experience prior to graduating that extends beyond traditional internship or part-time position by connecting them with small business owners who need help growing their company,” Hudson said.
Hudson said that one of the most prominent features of BRAINbait is, while students can upload their resume to their profiles on the website, they are not required to. Students do not have to apply to get on to the website or to start creating projects. Hudson said this will help students gain experience that they can include in their resumes, portfolios and future applications.
“When I was in school, I’m older and was in the military, and when I got out, I was probably ten years older than everyone else,” Hudson said. “And I was going into a career where I had no experience; I was doing information systems. I had no real background in that stuff, and when I was in school, I wished I had a way where I could get some more experience for my resume before I graduate.”
Hudson said BRAINbait also provides students with an opportunity to network with small businesses. They can connect with businesses while also showcasing their abilities.
“Some of the companies on the site are actually using it as a way to set students up to pre-qualify themselves for employment, so they are assigning a project that they would essentially do if they were to be hired and then targeting the students that have the quality of work that they’re looking for,” Hudson said.
Projects that businesses advertise on BRAINbait range from business cases and documentation, advertising campaigns, business strategy, web development, digital marketing, data analysis, market research, SWOT analysis, financial and investment analysis and other topics.
Beta testing for BRAINbait on KSU’s campus is scheduled to end by the end of the month.
