Back when I was doing research on Seth Godin’s internship offerings, I came a blog called Joel on Software. I quickly noticed that Joel’s company, Fog Creek Software, had internships in New York City, and with a little more research I found out that they’re some of the hottest internships out there. Fog Creek’s Summer internships fill up fast, so I had to wait until now to tell you about them. Fog Creek is now accepting and reviewing applications for 2009! Fog Creek is all about recruiting the top 1%, and they do internships exactly how they should be done. Even if you’re not interested in software development internships, read this article by Joel Spolsky on Fog Creek’s internship program. “Unpaid internship” isn’t in his vocabulary.
Fog Creek Software is a company by developers for developers. Their business model says that if Fog Creek has the best working conditions, they’ll get the best programmers. If they have the best programmers, they’ll make the best software, and the best software = profit.
To recruit the best programmers, we’ve invested in the nicest work environment we can get. In 2003, we moved into a new office that was custom-designed by a top architect to be the ideal programming workspace, with private offices, windows everywhere, a lounge with a big plasma TV, and every feature a programmer could ever want. We even have twenty power outlets at each desk, at desk height, four with UPS power. That’s how fanatical we are about catering to programmers. Oh, and really comfortable chairs. We never hesitate to buy the tools we need to get our work done (standard issue: two large LCD monitors, one 30”, the other 21”).
That’s just the start. Once you read Fog Creek’s Internships page, your jaw will drop. They offer a $750 weekly stipend, free housing in a local college dorm (you’ll have a private furnished room in Manhattan or downtown Brooklyn), reimbursed gym membership (up to $70/month), free MetroCard (gets you on any bus or subway in New York), free soft drinks, free lunches, free airfare to New York, all immigration/visa fees paid, and paid vacation days and holidays. Are you serious? Oh yeah, and you’ll get to work on some of the most exciting projects that Fog Creek is working on. For instance, in 2005 all of Fog Creek’s interns built and launched a new product called Copilot.
Right now Fog Creek Software is recruiting for both Software Development or Software Testing Coops in Spring 2009 and Software Development Internships in Summer 2009. They also had a Marketing Internship last year, but there’s nothing posted about it for this year. Check out the descriptions, and apply by e-mailing “jobs@fogcreek.com, attaching a current resume in HTML, Word, Plain Text or PDF format. In the body of the email, explain why you would be a good fit for this job. If you have a website, send us the URL.”
If you do end up getting an interview with Fog Creek Software, you might want to note that Fog Creek’s other founder, Michael Pryor, runs techInterview. It’s like a cheat sheet for your interviews with examples of puzzles and questions that you might encounter. Even if you’re not interested in a job at Fog Creek Software, this resource should help you interview for a job in finance, consulting, or software development.
Links to Help You Begin Your Research
Have you heard of any other companies with internship programs as impressive as Fog Creek Software’s? Let us know about them, so that we can write about them.
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Tags: Internships, marketing, New York, paid, software development
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