Is an Engineering Internship Important?

Engineering is an especially exciting field because the core purpose is to bring into fruition what is not. The understanding of universal principles paired with innovation yields world-changing results, including the lightbulb, airplanes, and the computer. Engineering internships provide an exclusive experience for students by teaching lessons outside of the classroom.

Insight On How a Business Operates

As an intern, you will get to see how businesses operate before starting your career. Engineering is a puzzle piece within a company. When a problem arises, there are three significant gaps needed to cross for a solution: money, time, and engineering. An internship makes those gaps clear, and you can see firsthand how they get prioritized. A former colleague of mine who is now an engineer for Lockheed Martin said, “Having an internship made my job transition easier because I was able to understand how a business operated, and what it was going to be like inside the business. I would say I had a leg up on my peers who didn’t have this experience.”

Learn How Problems Get Solved Within Industry

An engineering intern will get to work directly with engineers, learn what being an engineer means, and learn fundamentals on how a problem is solved. Issues are uncovered, identified, and then an action plan is created to solve the problem efficiently. One thing I have learned is that a facet of engineering efficiency is the cost-effectiveness of the solution. If a solution does not solve the entirety of the problem, it can still be considered a ‘win’ since reaching 100% would consume too many resources. Thirty years ago a filament bulb lasted about 1,000 hours; now an LED bulb can last 50,000 hours. While the first solution wasn’t perfect (or comparatively even possible), it provided a foundation and a gateway to the future.

Work On Real Projects

 Dr. Mohsin Tiwana said, “Projects we have completed demonstrate what we know – future projects decide what we will learn.” As an intern, you will have the opportunity to work on projects and support engineers working on projects, which is one of the most critical aspects of an internship. The length of an internship can be vital when it comes to projects. Summer internships are generally not enough time to see a project from conception to completion. Ideally, a longer (6 months to well over a year-long) internship yields more fruit and makes a candidate more marketable. Not only is it a resume booster for your first job search, but having a lengthy internship will help fill in real-world knowledge gaps.

In conclusion, even though there is more to be said about internships, the answer is clear; an engineering internship is very important. While it is possible to enter engineering without an internship, the transition and learning curve of a first job is often made more manageable by investing in an internship.