techpoint xtern internship program

During my sophomore year, I was on the search for a good summer internship! I attended an informational session about TechPoint’s Xtern program through the computer science department. The program has a multi-step application process which includes a standard initial application, an in-depth work sample assessment, and a full day of interviews. The Xtern program is hosted by TechPoint and they offer housing and additional programming in addition to the ten week long internship which is hosted by the company itself.

I made it past the initial application stage and was tasked to complete work sample assessments for the job types I was interested in. These were very in-depth assignments to complete over a weekend about a fictional scenario so the companies could see examples of your work. Once I received the tasks for the work sample assessment, I did some research since I was unfamiliar with some aspects of the assignments. I completed both of the assessments I needed to and was proud of the work I had put into them, especially considering the time limit and my initial lack of knowledge about some of the subject matter! You can view the work sample assessments I completed here.

I moved on to the interview stage because I was matched with companies who were looking for a candidate like me! The interviews took place in-person in downtown Indianapolis and I was scheduled to meet with four companies. Though it was stressful, it was a very cool experience to get to talk with these companies and so many other students going through the same process! A few days after the event, I was offered an internship with Scale Computing!

Unfortunately, COVID hit soon after and my plans were interrupted. Due to the pandemic, Scale could no longer take any interns. I was upset about losing this opportunity with the company, but TechPoint was able to pair me with another company last minute! This program would only last five weeks and be completely remote, but I was grateful for any opportunity during this time. My new internship was with High Alpha Innovation, which is under the parent company, High Alpha. There were other students also paired with High Alpha companies through the Xtern program and we had our only little cohort with a specialized timeline and programming for us!