Internship Advice - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: pigtwo
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2014, 10:41:26 pm
content: Hello everyone!So I'm a junior studying EE right now and I have two quick questions about internships.1. I interviewed for an internship position with the local power company but it turns out the internship comes down to something about determining if tress are going to interfere with the power lines. So it doesn't seem like this would be very relevant to gaining experience in the EE field. They pay fairly well I think($19-$23 an hour). Do you think that it would still be worth it? Is it reasonable to get an internship before you graduate that gives you real experience or are most like the one I just interviewed for?2. There is another internship position that I'm very interested in and they just posted the "requirements" but I meet only a couple of them. The thing is I don't feel like very many students(undergrad at least) would meet most of them. Is it worth still applying? Is it common for internships to hire you even if you're not experienced in all the places they list. Here are the requirements they posted.-High speed digital circuit design-General purpose circuit design-FPGA design-Complex RF circuit design up to 94 GHz (Pete's realm)I could say that I can do general purpose circuit design and FPGA design. But they other two I have almost no experience with.Any input would be great!

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 16, 2014, 10:55:12 pm
content: Any EE related job is a good job on your Resume, you just need to be "creative" with your job description.I wouldn't worry about those requirements, they are just dreaming, apply anyway.

author: Rudane
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2014, 11:30:15 pm
content: For the first job: Don't think just because it doesn't seem interesting that it won't be. Also, it pays well, which is good for a student. A lot of engineering is making decisions, so any job where you get to learn how to make good decisions will help you.For the second job: Don't forget you could be competing with mature students with technical backgrounds. Some technologists may have gone to school for their engineering degrees. That's what I did.I think you should apply for both and take whatever you get.

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2014, 11:54:08 pm
content: Nobody is good at FPGA design and is capable of doing anything complex with RF up to 94GHz. Just go for it.

author: Laertes
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 16, 2014, 11:58:58 pm
content: As someone who recently had the experience (I've done my bachelor's in computer science two years ago and continuously worked in engineering companies the whole time, three different companies in total, currently thinking about going back to that for a master's), I think you should definitley go for it.What I found is: Don't be afraid of taking up a job that sounds boring, as long as the company actually does stuff that interests you. Students usually are used as fillers for wherever they currently need workforce, so when you take the job, it may be typing paper documents into databases(that was my start), but after a month or two of that, maybe there's need for someone who can do route a little test adapter board in a week(maybe one without any electronics on it, just a few connectors and traces, but hey)...then you get to talk to the people who needed that adapter board and then maybe they also have some FPGA programming to do that noone's got time for and you get that job and so on and so forth. Working as a student will get you good chances at going to interesting places from boring ones.Also, don't think about wether or not you should apply to some company. Worst thing that happens is they never get back to you. Best thing is, they hire you for the job you applied to. Inbetween is they hire you for something else entirely. You don't have anything at all to lose.

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 17, 2014, 12:07:37 am
content: Quote from: pigtwo on February 16, 2014, 10:41:26 pmIs microwave circuit design an undergrad course anywhere? I guess some HAM might have some experience in that regard, but certainly not up to 94 GHz ... just apply (and be really careful with all the connectors if you do get in).There is some real experience to be had in the other one too ... namely some fields might not be sexy, but they do pay well (and probably have more job security).

author: pigtwo
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 17, 2014, 12:20:59 am
content: Thanks guys, that makes me feel better. I was kind of worried that it might be a waste of time(in regards to the first internship).I'm definitely going to apply to the second internship now. Although a slight problem is that the first internship (if I got it) would start in about two weeks while the other one I don't think would even interview in two weeks.

author: vk6zgo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 17, 2014, 07:06:08 am
content: Many years back I remember an EE telling me that the first 6 months of his employment (not internship,he had finished his Degree),was spent measuring the strength of Telephone poles----very interesting,but not Electronics by any stretch of the imagination!

author: Rudane
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 17, 2014, 04:48:46 pm
content: QuoteI took Microwave as an undergraduate. It was an undergraduate level course too. The project was to design a 4.6115 GHz Phase Locked Loop (circuit, PCB, and testing).