What is onboarding?

Onboarding is everything between being accepted by a platform or project and doing paid work on it: reading the guidelines, watching training material, passing a qualification test and sometimes completing a short trial batch.

Paid or unpaid

This varies by platform and project. Some pay for onboarding time at the project rate or a lower training rate; others do not pay for it at all. The job listing or the project brief usually says which. It is worth checking before you invest several hours.

What it usually includes

• Identity and sometimes credential checks.
• Tax and payment setup.
• Guideline reading and a quiz on the key rules.
• A trial batch that is reviewed before you get full access.

How to get through it well

Treat the qualification as real work: many platforms admit only the top scorers, and a failed qualification can lock you out of that project. Take notes on the rules most likely to come up, and ask questions in the project's support channel if one exists.

Example

A chemistry expert spends two hours on onboarding: reading a 40-page guide, passing a 15-question quiz, and completing five trial tasks. The trial tasks are reviewed the next day, and full access to the project opens a day later.