Software Engineer Intern Review

My role has been that of a Full-Stack Software Engineer in the Player Engagement team. I've contributed to the Unity Gaming Services front-end, improved the backend, wrote and refurbished both internal and external documentation, and regularly reviewed Technical Design Documents as well as Pull Requests from team members. I've also contributed to Unity SDKs.

Besides the experience of working in a professional team and all the skills that come along with it (communication, collaboration, initiative, aligning on scope and objective), I believe the best skill you learn is being comfortable being uncomfortable: that is, diving head-first into a repository or system that you know little about and learning about it as much as you can with minimal help to finish your task.

After my first 3 months, when I got accustomed to working in my team, I was treated just as any other full-time employee: the title of "intern" was just that, a title, and nothing else. I developed new features, undertook projects, and became the domain expert on SDKs within my team. Trust was put in me to deliver and lead development on any task or project I chose to undertake, without any micro-managing involved.

I was given as much help and support as I asked for. While no specific technical training or course was given for me to complete or go through, I was given the time to get accustomed with everything at my own pace, with my team being more than willing to pair up with me or answer any questions I had as I brought them up. For short, I never lacked the help I needed.

Unity sports a relaxed atmosphere. So long as you do your job and are respectful and considerate of everyone else, you won't have any trouble fitting in. In terms of work, there is no blame shifted around should something happen. Instead, a belief that everyone is doing their best under the circumstances is held, and discussions on how to improve in the future are brought up for the whole team to avoid similar mistakes.

Overall, I've greatly enjoyed my placement year. My team was supportive and understanding of my circumstances, and didn't treat me any different due to being an intern. The office was an accommodating place, always well equipped with both equipment and snacks, with many socials coming around. People are nice and always happy to chit chat. Benefits are extensive. There have been down sides, nothing is perfect, but little to complain about overall.

Yes

During interviews, explain your thought process. Being wrong here and there is fine, you're not expected to know everything, but explaining your thought process helps interviewers know how you approach problems, which is what they value more than extensive knowledge. Don't be afraid to backtrack and correct something you said either. Finally, if you've done a software engineer principles or professional computing course, make sure to use the knowledge from there here.