Tesla

Powertrain Manufacturing Engineering Intern

March - June 2019 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

I loved my team, my job function, and all the things I was able to learn.

What I wish was different

My experience and knowledge about the relocation.

Advice

It's a fantastic place, and personally it was an absolutely wonderful experience. For several other interns, it was not as enjoyable. It definitely depends on the type of work you are looking for.

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Electrical Engineering Intern

May 2019 • Sparks, NV

What I liked

I was given responsibilities comparable to that of a full-time engineer and was trusted to complete critical projects. There was a lot of freedom and flexibility in what I did and other team members were always willing to answer questions. I have been able to learn a lot in a short period of time and greatly value the experience.

What I wish was different

At times, expectations were vague and the workload was light. I'd prefer to be constantly busy

Advice

Be a self starter. Ask for more tasks, and be willing to do things outside of your comfort zone.

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Manufacturing Design Engineering Intern

August 2019 • Sparks, NV

What I liked

I worked on the process development battery manufacturing team. My team's priority was to increase production yield, reduce OPEX, and further develop autonomous processes. The projects that I worked on had direct impact on the success of the company. Hence, perfection and skill is expected. I really liked the main project that I was assigned. I was a project manager for the design and development of a gantry. I assigned tasks to automation development engineers, manufacturing engineers, created a budget, and proposed the project charter for executive approval. This has been by fourth internship during my undergraduate program, and I have done more in the first two months at Tesla than I have in the 12 months of previous work experience. I would also like to mention that interns typically work 45-50 hrs/week, but it depends on the timing and the goals of the company.

What I wish was different

The management is a bit unclear. Expect to be thrown in an ocean and to teach yourself how to swim.

Advice

The Gigafactory is the best place to work from a financial perspective. Housing is free, cost of living is low, and pay is high. Information is currency, especially at Tesla. You will be viewed as a valuable asset if you become an expert in what you are working on. This can lead to a full time offer. It is not discretely mentioned, but you must have work experience prior to coming to Tesla. GPA is not heavily taken into account. There are some interns whose GPA is below 3.0.

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Autopilot Hardware Intern

January - August 2020 • Palo Alto, CA

What I liked

The fast-paced environment and meeting very fun people that I worked with on a daily basis.

What I wish was different

I wish I could have stayed in-person for the entire duration of my internship, but with COVID, moved to remote a few months in.

Advice

Be comfortable with the fast-paced environment and ask questions! Everyone is really nice and will be glad to answer your questions.

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Solar Manufacturing Engineering Intern

May - August 2018 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

What I wish was different

Advice

Buckle up.

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Sales advisor

November 2020 - July 2021 • San Francisco, CA

What I liked

Fast moving

What I wish was different

The pay, they underpaid you bc of age/experience

Advice

Do your DD before joining

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Delivery Experience Specialist

May - July 2019 • Tempe, AZ

What I liked

It was fun, lots of opportunities. Fun cars to drive around and showcase for customers

What I wish was different

I wish I wasn't so busy in the summer to focus more on doing a good job

Advice

Wear sunscreen, sometimes you have to inspect vehicles in a parking lot and the sun burns in the summer

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Business Administration Intern

June 2019 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

I liked how fast paced the learning and growth was. I feel like I’ve learned so much and have only been there for a few months.

What I wish was different

I wish there were more interns, I was the only college intern in the legal department so I felt left out.

Advice

Always give your all because you don’t know who is watching. Always be ready to learn.

10 ${count} people found this helpful

Customer Experience Specialist

December 2017 • Santa Monica, CA

What I liked

Great company, great atmosphere, great product

What I wish was different

Management

Advice

Work hard and get promoted

1 One person found this helpful

controls engineer

May - August 2017 • Reno, NV

What I liked

Fast paced, zero beauraucracy, helpfull co-worker, amazing mentor

What I wish was different

Better transport facilities

Advice

Figure out living and transport asap

18 ${count} people found this helpful

Simulation Engineering Intern

May 2017 - August 2018 • Reno, NV

What I liked

Given real responsibility.

What I wish was different

Would have liked to have a free Tesla

Advice

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Supply Chain Management Intern

June - September 2018 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

What I wish was different

Advice

Take ownership of your projects, it's largely a self driven experience.

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Systems integration

June - September 2018 • Palo Alto, CA

What I liked

The team was very diverse in the projects it dealt with. I was able to learn how the system works as a whole as well as gain insight from a higher level perspective. It was technical yet still involved a lot of moving around and communicating.

What I wish was different

Things went by very quickly, i didn’t get a chance to get as deep of an understanding in some topic areas as I would have liked.

Advice

Definitely try different types of companies, each work environment, culture, even team is completely different. I’ve been at Tesla twice, both teams were two completely different experiences.

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Architectural Intern

June - August 2018 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

Great technical experience

What I wish was different

More creativity

Advice

It was a great introduction into the field but I would advice switching up your internships year to year so as to get various types of experience until you find one you really feel passionate about

1 One person found this helpful

Customer Experience Specialist

September 2017 • Boston, MA

What I liked

I really enjoyed learning more about the vehicles technological functions. I was given a better understanding of autopilot functionalities and other great applications in the vehicles. My poisition currently is a sales poisition where I learned more on financing/leasing etc. for the products. I also learned more about internship opportunities at Tesla with interal connections that I developed a long the way. This led to my visit at the factory in Freemot where I was able to see the software engineers in person (my dream internship).

What I wish was different

Nothing.

Advice

I think it's really important to see job opportunities in college as an out of school knowledge opportunity. You can work part-time at great industries that provide you with knowledge that you would never know in college that can go hand in hand with your major.

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Technical Program Manager Intern

June - September 2018 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

Lots of experience, it is always very fun, fast paced and exciting. I had a lot of responsibility as an intern, which gave me chances to learn.

What I wish was different

N/A

Advice

Make a lot of connections early. As a PM it is important to have a network within the company if you want things to get done.

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mechanical design intern

May - August 2023 • Palo Alto, CA

What I liked

Having ownership over projects. Working on a real engineering team

What I wish was different

More support for women in the engineering workplace and more intern support in general

Advice

Treat it as a real world job and do your best, it will pay off

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Mechanical Design Intern

May - August 2018 • Palo Alto, CA

What I liked

Learned a lot, exciting company

What I wish was different

Advice

1 One person found this helpful

Software Engineering Intern

September 2017 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

Lots of high value, interesting work.

What I wish was different

Much more corporate than I expected.

Advice

Buckle up, it's going to be a wild ride!

3 ${count} people found this helpful

Engineering Design Intern

June 2019 • Fremont, CA

What I liked

I loved that I was given full ownership and responsibility to design my own part of the vehicle. My managers were really hardworking and interesting people that motivated me to do my best work.