Software developer internships are a rite of passage for many developers. It’s the first time they’ll be working at an office and it can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be! In this post, we outline 13 hard truths about software developer internship and how to face them. We also include advice on what to do before you start your internship so that you’re prepared from day one.
Steps to Complete This Task
Here are some of our top tips for software developer internships.
*Before your internship starts: *Think about the skills you want to master at your new job and map out a plan to do so by researching appropriate projects or workshops that will help you achieve this goal. You may also wish to talk with an older employee in similar position as theirs who can provide insight into what they believe is important within their company. Remember, it’s not just about getting work done – it’s also very much about learning how things work too! *If possible, try to get a feel for the culture before starting and take note of any specific rules (dress code, hours etc) when there isn’t anything documented on the company website.
– -If you’re working remotely, take the time to figure out how your internet connection will work. Keep in mind that if you are going to have an internship on a university campus there may be specific wifi networks for students or faculty only. You can also research different locations so find one with fast and reliable internet service before committing! *During your internship: *Consider meeting up with someone from HR at least once during your first week of employment just to fill them in on what’s happened since their email welcoming you onboard (and feel free to ask any questions as well!). If they don’t mention anything about this early meetup then it should happen soon after orientation day is over.
*Set goals every few weeks asking yourself, “What am I going to do next?” This will keep your productivity high and motivate you when it feels like all the work is getting too overwhelming.
*Take care of yourself: You’ll be working a lot so don’t forget to get exercise, drink water, eat food that’s good for you- things like this can make the difference between feeling great or totally exhausted at the end of a day!
*Helpful Resources:
People just starting out in their career often think they need some sort of certification–even if it’s not required by employers–to prove themselves worthy. Here are five reasons why certifications might not matter as much as people think: *Certificates only show what you’ve learned in an academic setting
*Certificates usually show what you learned many years ago, and don’t always reflect your current skills or abilities
*There are certifications that are too broad to be helpful when looking for a job in the software development industry specifically. There aren’t any common standards for certifying knowledge of programming languages like Java, JavaScript, C++ etc., so it’s hard to know which ones matter most at this point in time
*Companies have been known to use certification as an entry-level requirement where there was no previous educational requirement before. This can lead people with less formal education into feeling discouraged about their career prospects because they’ll feel like they need more training than others who got hired without being certified
*Some people may not be as passionate about software development as others, but they know that it would make them a lot of money for the time and energy invested. This is fine if you’re in this scenario because you need to make some money and find fulfillment elsewhere
*Software developer internships can be unpaid or low-paid positions sometimes
*Interns should always have access to mentors who are more experienced developers at their company. If there’s no one assigned with the task, interns will end up being peer tutors for each other which isn’t good because they’ll never learn any new skills. A mentor provides guidance when needed so an intern doesn’t feel like all hope is lost on learning how things work around here. Mentors help to keep interns sane and happy
*Interns should always have access to mentors who are more experienced developers at their company. If there’s no one assigned with the task, interns will end up being peer tutors for each other which isn’t good because they’ll never learn any new skills. A mentor provides guidance when needed so an intern doesn’t feel like all hope is lost on learning how things work around here. Mentors help to keep interns sane and happy
*A lot of companies offer remote software developer internships where you don’t need to physically come into the office every day – this sounds great in theory but in reality it means that a person might not be able to make friends or socialize as much at work. It also means that it’s hard to get feedback from people and the office culture in general
*Every company has a different process of how they intern, so interns should research their company ahead of time before deciding if an internship is right for them or not. For example, some companies require you to be able to commit for at least six months before accepting an Internship offer while others have no such requirement
*It’s normal for software developer interns to learn new things every day – even though this sometimes results in feeling like there’s never any progress being made on your portfolio project or learning anything about what skills are needed by employers these days. This can make someone feel unmotivated which leads into wanting more than just one internship
*Some people may feel that their internship is not worth it because they do the same thing every day without learning anything new. When in reality, an intern should be balancing out the projects they work on with more challenging ones and also doing things such as networking to build connections for when looking for a job after graduation
*Internships are often seen as being all about getting your resume ready, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Interns have learned skills by observing others working and through trial-and-error which can lead into valuable experience later on down the line
The good: *In spite of feeling unmotivated or underused at times, interns will learn something new everyday while making connections w/ other people *Even though it might not seem as challenging, many interns have actually learned a lot through the internships they’ve done The bad: *Many meet their daily tasks and nothing more; there is little to no learning from or with them. When in reality, an intern should be balancing out the projects they work on with more difficult ones and also do things such as networking to build connections for when looking for a job after graduation And finally – the ugly: Interns often feel that what they’re doing isn’t worth it because of some companies are uninterested in providing any type of mentorship or training which leads to feeling underused at times. These circumstances can lead into feelings of disappointment and bitterness which can eventually
