Hello Reader! My name is Neharika. I finished my third year as a dual degree student in the department of Electrcial Engineering and spent a summer as an Interim Engineering Intern at Qualcomm Hyderabad. Qualcomm is the compnay that makes the ubiquotous Snapdragon processors found in smartphones and the company that is often associated with the 5G technology. It has 170 offices across 30 countries. Founded as a communications company, it now works on areas as diverse as advanced multimedia technolgies and self-driving cars, in addition to making super efficient chipsets.
Getting There
University Internship vs Company Internship? I decided to sit for companies with the thought that this would be last opportunity to experience the corporate life before placements and with a distant possibility of a PPO. Qualcomm is one of the first few electrical core companies that comes for internships through PT Cell, is a company that slightly prefers and also offers PPOs to Dual Degree students. Their JAF doesn't annouce specific projects and tends to be a general overview of the company and skills that they are looking for in a candidate. Their IAF opens in the first week of August and the final results are out by the end of August. They have two profiles - Hardware and Software and you give a test in either one of the domains. Most software postings being in Hyderabad and most hardware ones being in Bangalore. The selection test has questions on programming, digital, analog and signals and time tends to be a key factor. A decently big shortlist based on the test is announced and two rounds of interviews are conducted. The first round is a one-on-one technical interview testing you on basic concepts of electrical engineering, programming and a few puzzles. And before the 20 minute odd interview wraps up, they ask to take them through your project and other technical activities that you have undertaken breifly. The next round is a HR interview where they test your general communication skills and your enthusiasm to work with the company. They also ask for a preference of field of work that you would be interested in if you were selected although they make no promises that you will get to work in this area. And generally being selected for the HR round means you already have a foot in the door.
A word of caution for the internship process, select what companies you want to apply for wisely. Don't be too hopeful about a company and ditch opportunities that come your way in the mean time or don't be too pessimistic that you accept the first company that comes on campus. Talk to your seniors but don't take their word at face value. Think for yourself about what you want. Third year internship are not the make or break points in your lives but they can help you identify which direction you want to go or NOT want to go.
The Work
With offices spreads across 6 buildings in the IT Hub of Hyderabad, they have loads of teams working on a variety of things albeit mostly software. A company with an open door policy, you have cafeteria in every building, coffee lounges on each floor, and various popular eateries (Starbucks, Keventers, Dominos, Subway and the like) in some buildings. Equipped with a gynasium, you can spend your after work hours working on your fitness. You won't have to adjust your wardrobe for work either. Turning up in a neatly ironed pair of shirt and trousers in considered overdressed. The working hours are super flexible and all they care about is getting the work done. Also everybody around you is always willing to help you even if they are not in the same team as yours.
After a day of orientation, you are alloted your mentors, managers and eventually your project. Although your team allotement might seem random sometimes, you generally have a choice while picking the project you want to work on. I worked with the Camera Systems team and unfortunately can't talk more about it due to my Non-Disclosure Agreement. I was the only intern on the project that I was working on. While this gave me the freedom to structure the work and schedule the way I wanted, it also left me wanting a slightly better team experience. Most tasks and projects alloted here at Qualcomm are individual. It's the best place to work in if you working on 5G technology or any communcation related technology but there will probably be better places if you are looking for say Machine Learning projects. In addition to our project, we also had weekly talks about what is going on elsewhere in the company and some of the latest projects that they are working on.
City and Travel
Although stipend is a little on the lower side, the company pays for travel, accomodation and food. You sort of save your entire stipend with the acco being so close to your place of work. Summers can be harsh compared to the moderate Mumbai weather but it is way drier and an air conditioned office and accomodation compensates for the heat. It is not a traveller's paradise and the heat will kill half your enthusiasm but the later part of your stay gets more pleasant with evening showers breaking the heat of the day. You will certainly get a feel of the Deccani traditions, architecture and cuisine. Don't forget to try Haleem, a rich nutritious stew made of wheat or barley, lentils and meat or vegetables, if you are in the city during Ramzan. And beware it might have bones if you are having the non-vegetarian one despite looking soft and gooey.
Tldr: A great company with decent perks if you are looking for a core electrical engineering intership in the domain of communications and signal processing with a slight preference for dual degree students.
Thank you for reading through the piece. If you have further questions, feel free to ping me.