Preparing For An Engineering Internship Interview

A mentee of mine applied to 200+ software engineering internships in the last 3 months – here’s what you can learn from his experience  (He’s a master’s student in the USA, has strong skills, and I’ve been checking in with him every 2 weeks via text and calls.) 1️⃣ The numbers are brutal, but persistence matters   - He applied to 241 internships in 3 months.   - 117 companies ghosted him (no response at all).   - 88 companies rejected him outright after reviewing his application.   - Only 22 companies invited him for online assessments (OAs). - From those, he got 9 interviews and 2 job offers (Amazon + Autodesk). 💡 Lesson: It’s a numbers game. You will get rejected, a lot. But one offer is all you need. 2️⃣ The first 48 hours matter when applying - Some big-name companies closed applications within 48 hours of posting.   - The best way to stay ahead? Apply early and daily. - He used:   ○ GitHub repo: “Summer 2025 Tech Internships” (https://lnkd.in/gswGcUrG)   ○ Simplify.jobs – Job tracking and autofill applications ○ Swelist.com – Daily job postings sent via email 💡 Lesson: The earlier you apply, the better your chances. Set job alerts and apply as soon as listings go live.  3️⃣ Online assessments are a major filter   - Every OA took at least 1 hour.   - He failed 5 OAs outright but passed many others, only to get rejected later.   - The most frustrating experience? Getting a perfect OA score and still being rejected.  💡 Lesson: OAs are just the first step. Even if you ace them, companies may still reject you for other reasons (resume filtering, bad interviews, fit, etc.).  4️⃣ Interview preparation: go beyond Leetcode   - He spent 6+ hours in a library for 5-6 days before his Amazon final round.   - He used:     ○ Neetcode.io – A roadmap for coding interviews     ○ Leetcode cheat sheets – Writing down solutions & color-coding them based on difficulty     ○ https://lnkd.in/gY2pNcr8 – Filtering problems by company to study past questions  💡 Lesson: Don’t just solve problems: write down learnings, reinforce them, and study company-specific patterns. 5️⃣ Networking makes a difference - His first offer (Autodesk) came through a career fair, not an online application. - He had a great conversation with a recruiter, and they later reached out on LinkedIn to interview him. - One conversation led to a job offer. 💡 Lesson: Online applications aren’t enough, go to career fairs, reach out to recruiters, hiring managers and ask for referrals. 6️⃣ Rejections feel bad, but the outcome is worth it   - 200+ applications, 2 offers. That’s a 1% success rate.   - But he’s now interning at Amazon with a total comp of ~$55/hr this summer. 💡 Lesson: It only takes one “yes” to change everything. Keep going.  If you’re applying for internships/jobs right now, I know how exhausting it is. Rejections suck. Ghosting sucks. But stay consistent, use the right strategies, and don’t give up too soon.

I've interviewed 100s of people for 6-figure roles. (Here's what nobody tells you...) It's not the most qualified candidate who gets the job. It's the best prepared for the interview. How to prep like the top 1%: 1. Research the company like you already work there. ↳ Know their challenges, victories, and latest news. 2. Practice your answers out loud. ↳ What sounds good in your head may not when spoken. 3. Prepare 3 specific stories that showcase your skills. ↳ Focus on your adaptability and leadership. 4. Study the job description. Find the top 3 skills they want. ↳ Then craft examples proving you have them. 5. Do a mock interview with a trusted person. ↳ Someone who will give you honest feedback. 💡 And 7 questions to ask that make YOU stand out: 99% of candidates ask basic questions at the end. Don't waste this opportunity to impress! Ask these instead: ➟ What does success look like in the first 90 days? ➟ What are the biggest challenges facing the team that I could help solve? ➟ How would you describe the management style of the person I'd be reporting to? ➟ What distinguishes your top performers from everyone else? ➟ How does the company support professional development and growth? ➟ What made YOU decide to join this company, and what keeps you here? ➟ What do new employees find surprising after they start? The best candidates don't just answer questions. They create meaningful conversations. Remember: Interviews are a two-way street. You're evaluating them just as much as they are you. You spend 90,000 hours of your life at work. Choose a company and manager that support your growth. Your career will thank you. P.S. What's your best tip for nailing your interview? Share in the comments to help others prepare. ♻️ Valuable? Repost to share with your network. 🔖 Follow Justin Wright for more on career success. Want my 80 best cheat sheets? Get them here for free: BrillianceBrief.com   

Summer 2026 internship recruiting is already moving FAST. don’t let it catch you off guard. I remember the stress of last season. so many roles, so much noise, and advice that rarely works in real life. So here are the exact strategies and tools I used to survive (and thrive) during recruiting: 1. Apply ASAP like, within HOURS of postings. I set up calendar reminders for application drops. Why? Because roles at top companies fill up fast and early birds really do get the interview. - intern-list from Jobright.ai: This is my favorite all-in-one board for finding open roles, sortable by role. intern-list.com - Internships Repo from Simplify : Updated daily by students. Refresh this religiously for the latest drops: https://lnkd.in/guntbVEt 2. Automate the busywork let tech do the heavy lifting. Simplify automatically fills out internship applications to save hours and cut down on mistakes. Seriously, I wouldn’t apply without it. simplify.jobs 3. Method to find the freshest postings. Go to LinkedIn, search for your desired role, filter by "Date Posted." Now, in the URL, change 86400 (last 24 hours) to 7200 (last 2 hours). This shows only just-posted jobs. Sounds small, but I landed interviews this way that most people missed entirely. 4. Don't ignore the behavioral Exponent & Interview Prepper Exponent: Role-specific question banks for behavioral and technical interviews, especially for PM/SWE. Insanely useful for real interview prep. https://lnkd.in/gnzGVf2V Interview Prepper: An all-in-one platform for personalized interview plans, company guides, daily prep games, and a new AI coding evaluator. I made this so people wouldn’t have to piece together 50 different resources. now everything’s in one spot. www.interviewprepper.co 5. Track everything don’t let any opportunity slip. After every application, I recorded: company, date, position, what I sent, and when to follow up. Tracking helped me follow up at the right times and see what actually worked for me. 💡REMEMBER: Recruiting is tough and rejection is normal, but you only need one yes. If you have questions or need help starting out, drop a comment or DM me. I’ll respond to every single one. You’ve got this. Don’t let the early crowd run laps around you. lock in, prep smart, and shoot your shot.