My Experience as a High School Intern at Lockheed Martin
Every high school student knows the stress of lining up summer opportunities, whether that be a job, volunteer work, a research position, or even that coveted internship. For those looking for a summer internship, you have probably already run into the qualification predicament. For most companies, a high school education is not enough for the job; most are looking for college students, specifically those from top universities. But even if they don’t, they’re looking for candidates with experience, and most high school students don’t fit the bill. Just like tons of other high school students, I asked myself “how can I get an internship if it requires experience that I can only get from this internship?” I need experience to get experience, but I can’t get that experience without prior experience. How does that even work?
Well, first of all, that is not necessarily true. But second of all, networking and a lot of luck. I am now an incoming freshman at UCLA, but I have been interning at Lockheed Martin since the summer after junior year of high school. So 15 months and counting. And while I didn’t get my internship through the grind of cold email networking en masse like some others, my relationship with my AP Computer Science teacher helped point me in the right direction.
As part of the computer science club at my high school, I was able to participate in the annual Codequest competition held by Lockheed Martin. Now if you’re familiar with competitive programming, Codequest is just another regional competitive programming competition with teams representing different high schools. And even though my team got its ass kicked (even with a USACO plat + gold on our team), the competition offered an internship application for all participants.
Tip #1: Resume! I would highly recommend all high school students to have some sort of resume prepared or at least one that’s in the works even if you don’t have any opportunities lined up yet. At the very least, it is good practice and will give you a leg up when you do start to look for opportunities.
The really great thing about this opportunity with Lockheed Martin was that they were looking for high school applicants specifically. So when it came to the interview, they cared a lot more about why I was interested in a technical field (for me computer science) and how I had pursued it (intellectual vitality) rather than previous industry experience (phew!). Luckily for me, I had plenty to talk about due to a variety of personal projects I had been working on for a few years prior. While these projects were nothing impressive on their own, they gave me an opportunity to show that I was invested in learning different aspects of computer science. My experience working on my own projects really helped carry me through that interview, ultimately landing me an internship offer later that week.
Tip #2: Personal projects! This applies specifically to computer science students but also can be adjusted to work for other students in STEM. After getting started with a coding language (or multiple coding languages) whether that be from a class at school or from an outside source, it is really important that you find some sort of project you are interested in working on. Not only is this a really great learning experience (hands-on learning!), having a portfolio of projects will look impressive to potential employers/mentors and will definitely help in landing an opportunity, especially if you have no other experience. While personal projects may seem daunting at first, there are a ton of resources on the internet to help you get started. It doesn’t hurt to start small.
Just some tidbits about the job itself. I am working remotely as is the rest of my team. Most of the people I work with live on the east coast, and the three hour time difference has proven to be difficult at times. There was also a 3 week period where I had to attend a 5am-10am training which was a bit of a pain (the training leaders were based in India I believe). My team is on a 4/10 work schedule, but it is not always expected to work the full 40 hours a week as an intern. There is lots of flex time based on the amount of work, which is really convenient. Also, I am the only intern on the team which is kind of interesting.
Probably the most difficult part of this internship was getting started. I was not told my start date until the night before, and my work computer was randomly shipped to me with no prior notice. My manager also had no idea that I was in a different time zone, and I remember receiving multiple calls on the first day at 5ish in the morning (I was still sleeping). But after this initial lapse of communication, the logistics of the internship were laid out well, and I had no related issues going forward. Technically speaking, my work computer was a pain to set up, but that probably goes with most jobs.
I also remember having a severe case of imposter syndrome getting started. In fact, after just a few days, I remember telling myself that I would not make it through the summer. And to be honest, the first few weeks were incredibly overwhelming. My team threw loads of information my way, from different documentation sources to a heap of development processes and softwares, all of which I spent over a hundred hours poring through.
Although the start was difficult, my “buddy” on the team was a world of help to me. I learned quickly to ask a ton of questions, schedule meetings with the team, and ask for demos and examples if I needed help. Being able to communicate difficulties I was having and asking questions really paid dividends for me. At this point, I have been working at Lockheed Martin for over a year on a few different projects, and I feel a lot more confident.
Tip #3: Ask for help! I think one unrealistic expectation as an intern is that you need to prove that you are qualified and you can do things on your own. In fact, the opposite is true. The whole point of an internship is to learn and to get experience. In that respect, some “hand-holding” is okay and even needed.
For those interested in the actual work I am doing, here’s a few technical tidbits:
Year 1: Java API development, Postman testing, GraphQL API development, API documentation automated generation
Year 2: eQubeMI development (eQube is a no/low-code software solution), Javascript API testing
Overall, I have been really happy about my internship experience at Lockheed Martin. It has been a great learning experience for me, and I really enjoy working with my team. The one qualm I might have is the pay; many of my friends end up earning a bit (sometimes a lot) more working other jobs, though they do not have the same resume value and experience potential as this internship. A worthy trade-off.
For anyone looking to follow this path, the first step is joining or even starting the Codequest team at your school. This probably means getting involved with your school’s computer science/STEM related club (something you should do either way!).
While I would highly recommend finding an internship like this, there are certainly other great opportunities I would consider. The following is a short list of summer activities that I have heard other students pursue:
1. Research position. This can be either through a program (there are tons for high school students) or through a university. Finding a professor to research under is definitely a more difficult approach but can also pay dividends. Great learning experience!
2. Paid job. Making some money over the summer can never hurt on top of gaining invaluable work experience. This can be related to one of your interests or not.
3. Volunteer work. Lots of opportunities out there, can be either in your immediate community or have a larger scope. Never hurts to be related to one of your interests.
4. Summer programs. There are a ton of different programs (many are paid) through various universities. Find a program related to one of your interests for maximum benefit.
5. Summer classes. Many students end up taking classes to get ahead in high school, knock out some GE requirements, or learn something they are interested in. Most classes are low-cost.
Whatever you decide to do with your summer is not meant to be overly stressful, though it may seem that way sometimes. Good luck!
