An inside look at the Autodesk internship experience

3 min read

This article was co-authored by Soo Lee Goh, Senior Early Career Program Manager, APAC.

When you’re an intern at Autodesk, you get to work on meaningful projects, be mentored by industry leaders, work with student peers from around the world, and participate in activities that will really enhance your personal and professional development. It’s an experience you’ll never forget!

Our global internship program is targeted toward students working toward degrees in fields like Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, and Design, among others, and lasts 3-6 months depending on your location. When you join our internship program, you’ll get a holistic overview of Autodesk’s culture, business, and customers, and experience on-the-job training, personal development sessions, networking opportunities, and social gatherings where you’re equipped with the fundamental skills needed to have a successful internship, build your skillsets and, most importantly, have fun!

Real projects, real impact

Autodesk’s internship program provides a great platform for interns to be constantly challenged and get out of their comfort zones. We create a learning culture where you can build your capabilities, keep an open mind, take on different tasks, and develop the confidence to try, fail and learn from your experiences. By the end of your internship, you’ll have learned more about yourself, developed new skills, and made plenty of new friends!

During your internship, you’ll learn all about Autodesk’s culture and values and hear from leaders about professional behaviors like personal branding, being authentic, speaking up, curiosity, creativity, and collaboration. Applying this new knowledge to your daily work, you’ll learn how to contribute effectively and integrate into the corporate environment. You’ll be provided with timely feedback, and you’ll also learn how to give and receive feedback to help build on your strengths and focus on your development areas.

Our intern cohort is made up of diverse backgrounds who bring new dimensions and different perspectives to the team. Interns work closely with their managers and mentors who coach them regularly, introducing them to latest technology and expanding their knowledge beyond their school curriculum. Our internship program provides a flexible environment where you’re empowered to be accountable for your own learning while working together as what we like to call “One Autodesk.” I’m very excited about the open environment Autodesk has created for our interns to thrive and bring their best selves to work.

Once an Autodesker, always an Autodesker

Some of our current leaders started out as Autodesk interns – because of the environment, support, opportunities, and guidance Autodesk provides, they’ve invested in their careers at Autodesk for the long term. We love it when Autodesk interns return to work for us full-time after graduation and aim to hire as many former interns as we can!

According to our internship exit survey, 99% of our interns say they would recommend Autodesk as an employer to a friend. Other positive things our interns have referenced include feeling empowered to manage their work and time; our authenticity; our flat hierarchy; our coaching culture; a company that cares, trusts, supports, and understand their needs; a focus on solving problems; collaboration; and creating a safe environment for learning. Our interns have also told us they were impressed by their managers who took the time to understand their capabilities, which is critical – especially at the start of the internship.

I’m excited about the future of our internship program as it will certainly continue to evolve. Autodesk recently launched Flex Forward, our bold new approach to becoming a hybrid-first company. Like our full-time employees, interns will also be able to choose a home-based, office-based, or hybrid work environment. We’ve found that most interns want the chance to visit an office to gather in person, so we will continue to evolve intentional gatherings for interns. We understand most gatherings will default to fully remote or hybrid – especially with interns in 12 countries – but in-person gatherings will still be a critical part of our culture and how we get work done. In the meantime, a hybrid-first company means interns can reside anywhere in the country and still get to experience an Autodesk internship!

If you’re interested in an internship at Autodesk, make sure to learn about our company and our focus on inspiring innovation and creating value for our customers. And check out our Autodesk Life channels to hear from current Autodeskers about our culture and how being in a supportive environment helps you to be your very best. We also have a variety of recruiting events throughout the year where you can meet or hear from Autodeskers about the unique ways we work to shape a thriving future for all.


Learn more about Autodesk internships and early career opportunities here.

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