Speaking engagements while in school?

[jenmarie]

Hi! I'm wondering if anyone has had success making money doing speaking engagements in their area of study while in grad school or if it has helped them get a job after grad school. Seems like there would be lots of businesses and orgs interested in speakers that aren't so expensive, but are still experts (about to graduate PhDs!).

Thoughts?

[eco_env]

as some one who organized lectures, I wouldn't pay a grad student to speak. In many cases, we'd only pay transportation and hotel costs even for famous speakers. occasionally we gave them ~ $1000, but this was for big name speakers.