An engineering degree is certainly one of the most sought-after degrees by undergraduate students in colleges across America and the world. As a sophomore at UTSA studying for a bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering, I am steadily working through required requirements of attaining the degree. Once all the dust is settled after the academic year, many engineering students, like me, are on the search for an internship to gain working experience. With plenty of theoretical concepts I’ve learned, applying the knowledge I’ve gained to a job is one of the most important things for me. A product design firm is the perfect place to gain experience with hands-on learning and other skills that will stick with you for your entire career.
Engineering work and internships.
For engineering students, internships that include critical thinking, applied use of concepts learned in school, and acquiring new skills with CAD (computer aided design) and other engineering software are important when they make their employment decision. Interning at a medical design firm like Zewski has helped me touch base with the basics of engineering work and has laid a great foundation for me to build my skills from. I started with shadowing the mechanical engineers at the company, seeing what they do on a daily basis and seeing how they tackle tasks assigned to them. From there I was slowly incorporated into more technical tasks and was able to get a feel for what it was like to create CAD drawings, presentations, and perform other tasks such as inspections of incoming molds from outside manufacturing companies. Even though I have had the benefit of working an internship under a family business, Zewski has hired other interns whom I often work besides. Regardless the circumstances, these opportunities are extremely valuable for engineering students to learn skills they wouldn't normally learn until their final year in school or beyond.
Securing your future career and establishing connections early on.
Internships also have benefits outside of the physical and critical thinking skills you gain while on the job. Throughout my time at Zewski, I’ve been able to meet tens of different doctors, engineers, and other university students. I even attended a trade show in New Orleans in the summer of 2022, delivering a product prototype I had the benefit to work on, and where hundreds of companies showed up to sell their ideas to potential investors and customers. The journey, outside of the learning experience while working, has been lots of fun with some traveling opportunities included. Establishing connections while in school are critical to an engineering student’s future career. The internship experience helps students, even if they decide to work under a different company after graduation than they did while interning. Gaining the experience and having the connections on your resume is sure to help students secure jobs once the full-time job hunt begins.
How do I know if an internship is right for Me?
Internships help students who do not have on-the-job experience get industry ready. Even if an internship does not seem right for what you want to do after school, it still can be a positive learning experience. Sometimes in school, students feel guided towards a subject and want to work towards it after graduation. Working at an internship might reinforce this idea or give the student a change of heart towards that line of work. This isn’t all bad however, as students learn what they do and do not enjoy doing. Throughout the internship, you will gain experience working, which is the most important thing for an intern. If an internship isn’t right for you, it's all a good basis to learn who you are and what you want to do after school.