If you are a student studying B.Tech. or M.Tech. computer science, then you can think of applying for internships in the final year of your courses. Here are some ideas of internship opportunities to look out for if you are a student of B.Tech. or M.Tech. computer science.
Introduction
If you are studying computer science engineering courses, then you will get lots of opportunities at internships unlike many other courses. In fact, software engineering is one of the engineering streams that incorporates large number of internships coming from a diverse range of companies. Therefore, if you have just started your B.Tech or M.Tech course in any subject of computer science, then you should be mentally prepared for opting for internships. Generally, at every college or university, companies come during the seventh semester and third semester of B.Tech course and M.Tech course respectively with placement opportunities. However, you might get internship opportunities even before the seventh or the third semester of B.Tech and M.Tech, respectively. Sometimes, due to urgent requirements the companies look for unpaid interns to do their jobs just after the students have completed one year into their B.Tech or M.Tech courses. Let us take a look at some prerequisites for getting such internships
Common prerequisites for getting computer science internships
Previous knowledge and hands-on experience in certain coding languages. Depending on the type of internships or the company you apply for, the language may vary, but you will have to be an expert in any particular computer language. Lots of computer science internships are dependent on whether you know a certain language or not.
Experience in mobile apps or games developing or managing is required by some companies. These internships are more applicable for M.Tech computer science students as they are far more likely to have job experience in mobile games or apps development. If you are a B.Tech student, then you can think of completing some certificate courses on mobile application development before you apply for such internships.
Some internships, especially which are paid, require that you have prior internship experience. However, this is rare in the cases of companies offering internships to B.Tech students. If you get a short term internship, while you are pursuing your B.Tech course then it is advisable to go for another one after the tenure of prior is complete.
Last but not the least, some internships, especially with huge information technology giants, involve signing of a contract that you will join the company as a permanent employee once you successfully finish the tenure of the internship. This has both pros and cons. On the pro side you get a job. On the con side if you aren't looking to settle in that company in the future based on the experience of your internship, then you might not want to join the company as a permanent employee in the future.
Best internship opportunities for B.Tech and M.Tech students
Front-end developer-You have to develop the front ends or the user interfaces for various applications running on various portals. Therefore, you would require expertise in the respective programming languages. One advice here would be to learn these programming languages from some professional certificate course on such programming languages. Such courses will make you ready for such internships. Sometimes such internships could be unpaid, but the work experience that you get is worthy of doing it.
Software developer-You have to develop small applications for the company. One of the best thing about this internship is that you get prepared for your final year project by working on this internship. This means that generally in the final year of your B.Tech or M.Tech project, you need to develop a small application or software. Since you already have an idea by working in a related internship such a project basically becomes a piece of cake for you.
Researcher-If you are looking for becoming a computer scientist in the future, then applying for research intern positions are the best for you. You might be taken on a pilot project where there are requirements of research interns and then you may become a full-time employee of the company.
Cloud computing interns-This is also another blooming area where you will find several internship opportunities. You may join a company an intern cloud developer and then if the company likes your performance and signs a contract for a year or two with you, you can become the junior developer of that company.
Management interns-There could be several categories of management internships for computer science students where the main job for the intern is to analyse data. You can become a supply management intern or a business analyst intern or other take on similar roles. Mostly you will have to collect data and analyse it for the company. This internship gives you an opportunity to explore new domains and check your ability with management-related functions. These internships are seldom unpaid, which is another positive side to it.
Conclusion
To conclude, I would like to mention that whether an internship is paid or unpaid, it should not be an initial concern for you while applying for it. You should be mainly concerned on whether or not you will be involved in job roles or responsibilities that will help you get your dream job or enhance your career in the future. So one last word of advice here would be choose an internship based on the job responsibilities that you have to take up there. When you will be applying for jobs in the future and take up what you really wish to do, then the work experience from your previous internships will help you prove yourself as a better candidate. The name or reputation of the companies where you apply for internships should be lesser motivating factors for you, if the work experience in the internship that you will get is valuable to your career. It will be a bonus if you also have a decent pay package in the internship.
