Intel Corporation is one of the largest semiconductor chip manufacturers in the world. The Silicon Valley-based company is well-respected and many engineers would agree that working there would be a life-altering opportunity. For Stephanie Carlson, an Electrical Engineering student at BYU, her dream of working at Intel recently became a reality. Stephanie joined Intel as an Intern, working with fifty other interns and full-time employees in Oregon. “I really like it a lot,” says Stephanie. “This is my first internship ever, so it’s definitely very different than working an average minimum-wage job. It’s a lot more challenging, but also a lot more engaging and interesting. I think it’s been really good for me.”
Stephanie detailed a few projects that she has been working on over the past few months, “What I’m doing is a lot of time analysis. For what I’ve been working on, I make sure data is getting from one place to another and that it’s getting there at the right time—it’s not getting there too slow or two fast or else it will get corrupted. My job is to make sure that the different cells are the right size so data can get from one place to another on time.” Stephanie’s experiences at Intel have also provided her with unique insights into the daily problems which engineers encounter while on the job. “I’ve learned a lot about designing and testing new products,” says Stephanie. “I spend a lot of time resizing cells and running tests on them using a tool that [Intel] has. [The tool] tells you how the new design is working. Sometimes I’ll change one thing and end up creating five new errors! Learning how to work through that has been extremely valuable, it’s been an interesting learning process.”
Stephanie was also quick to point out how her experiences at BYU have helped her in here internship. “I learned about the concept of timing and timing analysis set up in my classes at BYU.” Stephanie’s on the job training at Intel has also taught her many things which will be beneficial to her future career. “A big thing [I have learned] is how to work with other people. If you have a problem with one part, you have to go talk to someone and it’s always a different person every time because everyone is an expert at different things. So it definitely built a lot of confidence because I had to get out of my comfort zone to go ask for help from people who have been doing this for much longer than I have. Learning to ask questions is important.” Stephanie certainly has a bright future ahead of her.
She looks forward to pursuing a career which involves the same tasks which she currently does at her internship.