Major: Computer Science
Company: Collins Aerospace
Internship Title: Software Engineer Co-op
Location of Internship: Jamestown, ND
Semester: Spring 2025
Why did you choose the company you work for?
I chose Collins Aerospace for a few key reasons. A friend of mine works at their Iowa location and consistently speaks highly of the company culture and how he is enjoying his challenging internship. That personal recommendation carried a lot of weight. I also had a great conversation with a recruiter at a career fair, where we talked about the cargo systems location. What stood out to me was how something as simple as cargo was more complex than I thought and how Collins was a leader in the cargo field. Lastly, I was eager to gain experience at a Fortune 500 company to see firsthand how a large, global organization operates and to challenge myself in a high-performance environment.
What were some requirements for your internship?
Some of the key requirements for my internship included having a strong understanding of Java, as it’s the primary programming language used in my role. My responsibilities have involved meeting with stakeholders and team members to gather requirements, developing new software features, enhancing existing systems, and performing thorough testing to ensure quality and functionality. A significant part of the role has also involved working with people from various roles across the organization, including other types of engineers and different senior managers, to understand their needs and ensure that a specific piece of software is meeting their requirements. This collaborative aspect has helped me see how different parts of the organization come together to make a whole.
What is your favorite part about your internship experience?
My favorite part of the internship experience was leading a project on my own from start to almost completion. The project involved developing a purchase portal to track various order types. What I enjoyed most was gathering requirements from different teams within the Cargo division and understanding what each group wanted to see in the final product. It was a great opportunity to take ownership of designing a test version, demoing it to stakeholders, collecting feedback, and then enhancing it based on their input. One of the most rewarding moments was when teams I hadn’t initially worked with reached out after the demo to express interest and share how they could benefit from the tool. It showed me the impact my work could have across the organization.
What is the most challenging part of your internship? How have you overcome these obstacles?
The most challenging part of my internship was the initial onboarding phase, specifically trying to understand the business and the large-scale project I was brought on to support. Since the project had already been in development for a long time, it was difficult at first to get up to speed. There were a lot of unfamiliar acronyms and technical terms, and sitting in on early calls with the full development team, without fully understanding the context, was overwhelming. To overcome this, I reached out to a coworker who was also assigned as my mentor. He took the time to walk me through both the high-level structure and the deeper technical details of the project and the business. That guidance made a huge difference in helping me feel more confident and capable in my role.
How did you find your internship?
NDSU Career Expo.
My biggest piece of advice for students trying to secure an internship through the Career Expo is to treat each experience as a learning opportunity and build on it. I had been visiting the Collins Aerospace booth since my freshman year, and while I didn’t receive an offer the first couple of times, I didn’t let that discourage me. Instead, I took the feedback I received from the recruiter, particularly about how to improve my resume, and used it to strengthen my future applications. One specific improvement I made was taking on an on-campus job as a learning assistant for a computer science course that focused on Java, which directly aligned with the skills Collins was looking for. That not only improved my resume but also gave me more to talk about in interviews. Persistence, continuous improvement, and being open to feedback made a big difference in ultimately landing the internship.
Why was it beneficial for you to register for academic credit through the Internship Program offered through the Career and Advising Center?
I was able to keep my scholarships because I maintained part-time student status during my internship. That was important to me. Another unexpected but positive experience was recognizing a name on the class discussion boards as someone I was interning with. It gave us a shared connection outside of work, and it was something we were able to talk about.
What advice would you give a student who is in the process of searching and applying for an internship?
My biggest piece of advice is don’t get discouraged if you don’t secure an internship on your first try or even your first year or so. It’s all part of the process. Use each Career Fair, both in the fall and spring, as a learning opportunity. Pay attention to the feedback you receive, especially when it comes to your resume or how you present yourself. Also, try to notice patterns in the types of questions recruiters in your field tend to ask so you can better prepare for future conversations. Every interaction helps you grow and get closer to your goals.
