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How hard is it to find a software internship as a Junior in CS for this summer and what are some tips for applying this late?
I'm currently a Junior at San Jose State University majoring in CS and found out a little late about internships so over the fall break I started building projects and in the new year applied to some internships but haven't heard back. I went to some job fairs but they were mainly focused on Engineering.
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5 answers
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Sha’s Answer
As a junior CS student, it's hard to find a job. My suggestion is to work on Leetcode first. Leetcode is very very important! It's easy to make you stand out.
Sha, thank you!
Ibrahim
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Kavita’s Answer
I agree with Sha, given the current market situation, my recommendation would be to work on leetcode and projects that will help you stand out. Also, you can spend time on your resume editing and getting it reviewed by professionals. I know Google offers some sessions for student for free. It was really helpful for me.
This was super helpful, thank you!
Ibrahim
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Charles’s Answer
I think many big companies will have already found interns (or are not doing internships) at this point. But I would say it would still be worth it to look for an internship even if you have to lower your standards, because having an initial experience is really helpful for landing internships/jobs in the future. My first internship was with a relatively unknown 8 person company, because I started applying late and other opportunities fell through. Although it wasn't the best possible intern experience, it still got me a foot in the door in the industry and definitely helped when I applied for internships the next year.
If you can't find any suitable opportunities, I agree with other commenters that working on a project would be the best way to gain experience and have something on your resume to talk about when interviewing for future opportunities. Unless you really struggle with interview questions, I wouldn't overprep leetcode as in my experience the interview questions for entry level positions will be much easier compared to those for senior positions. As long as you can handle leetcode easys, you'll be more than fine for finding your first internship/job. I think I was asked to program fizzbuzz at least twice, when looking for my first internship. You will be evaluated more based on your experiences working with others on programming projects, so be prepared for that.
If you can't find any suitable opportunities, I agree with other commenters that working on a project would be the best way to gain experience and have something on your resume to talk about when interviewing for future opportunities. Unless you really struggle with interview questions, I wouldn't overprep leetcode as in my experience the interview questions for entry level positions will be much easier compared to those for senior positions. As long as you can handle leetcode easys, you'll be more than fine for finding your first internship/job. I think I was asked to program fizzbuzz at least twice, when looking for my first internship. You will be evaluated more based on your experiences working with others on programming projects, so be prepared for that.
Updated
Farhana’s Answer
It is hard to get an internship. However you can skill up by doing hackerrank and Leetcode. It is also good to do some projects even if from youtube. hicounselor.com offers some live projects that is a good experience too.
Updated
Isabella’s Answer
Don't give up! Keep applying to different places and work on side projects as you go. Practice a lot of coding questions as that is what they will most likely ask in interviews. You can also join programming clubs and participate in activities with them that you are able to add to your resume. Another thing that can stand out is participating in hackathons and putting those projects on your resume as well.
Thank you!
Ibrahim