Ford Motor Company

MS&S Intern

May - July 2023 • Houston, TX

What I liked

The company culture, even though everyone was very busy, ensured I had the support to succeed during my internship. Everyone was very accommodating and had a lot of freedom and autonomy.

What I wish was different

This role was remote, and I was hoping to stay in Houston for a longer period to learn more in person, but I'm extremely grateful for what this internship provided me.

Advice

Do your best and reach out to as many people as possible! And most importantly, have fun!

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Cyber security internship

May - August 2023 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

Very technical and informative

What I wish was different

Management focusing on growth of intern more.

Advice

Take things slow, and try to understand things more.

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Software Engineering Intern

May - July 2023 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

I absolutely loved the atmosphere. My team of interns and leaders were all incredibly supportive and helped me improve many of the technical skills. Being in the work environment remotely, I also improved upon soft skills such as time management, formal/informal presentations, and efficient teamwork without being in the actual office.

What I wish was different

I wish that I could have been in person more often. Being a software engineer that lived far away, it wasn't necessary to go into office regularly. I did have the fortunate opportunity to meet everyone in person once, but that was towards the end of the internship. When I was in Dearborn, it was a fantastic experience and my team was able to work the most effectively when all together, so I hope that Ford can get around to making more internships in person for the future.

Advice

My piece of advice is that the internships are meant to be a place for you to grow. You aren't expected to know everything or be perfect at what you do, so ask questions to learn more. I just finished my freshman year of high school when I had this opportunity, so I picked up on many technical skills by shadowing other interns or senior engineers, asking questions during daily calls, and volunteering to do tasks that challenge me.

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Service Engineering Operations Intern

May - July 2023 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

Culture at Ford is so inclusive and welcoming. Learned new skills at Ford. Team building at Ford. Resources at Ford. People at Ford.

What I wish was different

Wish I did more backend coding.

Advice

Be humble. Communicate well. And ready to work in a fast paced and exciting environment.

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Hardware and Controls Intern

June - September 2018 • Palo Alto, CA

What I liked

New buildings with a pool table and ping pong table. Could leave work at work and it didn't follow you home. Free food in the kitchen. Lots of other interns to hang out with. Open floor plan, managers don't have their own office so it's less intimidating to go talk to them. Used agile development.

What I wish was different

My manager didn't really have anything prepared for me to do so I was somewhat aimless during my internship. A little more direction and structure would have really helped.

Advice

Create a finished product that you can show off. Don't just contribute to a project, it's less impressive than being done and wrapping something up and handing it off.

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Software Engineering Intern

May - August 2022 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

the various programs and events throughout the internship (hackathon, city of tomorrow challenge, intern networking sessions, etc.) were all very valuable and I was able to learn a lot from the experience and make some genuine connections, which was nice considering I was remote.

What I wish was different

Advice

Just do everything that you can with all of the events to make the most of it. Also, don't be afraid to ask your advisor to talk with people in other areas of the company. By doing that, I was able to talk to people 1:1 throughout a lot of different teams throughout the company and even with some with partner companies.

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Manufacturing Engineering Intern

May - August 2022 • Chicago, IL

What I liked

Good pay, good coworkers, great company reputation

What I wish was different

I wish I was more involved with a specific project or task.

Advice

Have an idea of what you want to get out of the internship. Make sure your boss knows that you want to have a concrete project to show at the end of your internship.

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Data Science Intern

June - August 2022 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

I liked the projects I was a part of. The tools, technology and concepts I was introduced to at the company.

What I wish was different

I wish I had more time to develop my projects

Advice

Come with the mindset to learn. Don't feel the pressure to perform well

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Product Development Program Control & Systems Engineer

May - August 2022 • Livonia, MI

What I liked

I loved how welcoming everyone at Ford was from day one. My coworkers were very friendly and willing to answer questions! The work was also interesting and I could always find something to do. I expressed what area of the company I was interested in working for during my interview and was placed in a role that matched my interests well! I also learned a lot about many different positions and groups within the company and was able to network outside of my group through my FCG (Ford College Graduate) mentors.

What I wish was different

I wish I could have lived closer to my group's location and had more opportunities for hybrid work. Ford kept interns mostly virtual as COVID protocols are slowly being lifted and the world finds a new normal. I am hoping in the future the company will bring interns back in person like they did in the past. At times it was difficult working virtually since hands on experience and in person team work can be really important for learning and team growth as an engineer. While I understand the value in flexibility of virtual work, I think a lot of interns and young professionals would benefit socially and professionally from more hybrid opportunities.

Advice

Reach out to as many people as you can during your internship! Ford employees are very friendly and willing to talk with you. I found a lot of value in expanding my network as it helped me learn about areas I would be interested in growing in with the company. If you have an opportunity to talk to someone or question to ask, be confident and speak up! I found that asking questions and networking taught me a lot, not only about my work, but also my interests and what the company is looking for in an employee.

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Communications Intern

June - August 2021 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

I liked that I was able to work remote and have exposure to a large corporate communications work structure.

What I wish was different

I wish I had more guidance from my boss.

Advice

Ask as many questions as you can! People want to help.

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Summer Intern

May - August 2021 • Redford, MI

What I liked

Nature of work. As an EECE major, I was asked to create a website. Completely outside my area of expertise but mentor provided me with good set of tools to make it happen. Very satisfying to accomplish.

What I wish was different

Had very little contact with team first few weeks (~30min/week). More time to speak with mentor/customer would have been useful.

Advice

Think creatively and don't be afraid to spend a lot of time planning: it'll pay you back later. Minimally viable product is another mentality to get comfortable with. Not over optimizing things will quickly save time. Spend a lot of time on final presentations, rehearse, and be willing to present at other events if asked--exposure to management can be very good.

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Manufacturing Engineer Intern

May - August 2021 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

Great experience in the automotive manufacturing environment. Able to reach out to numerous employees with questions, all extremely willing to help.

What I wish was different

Internship was all remote, would have been a good learning experience to tour the stamping plant.

Advice

Great learning experience, great people, great pay.

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Research and Advanced Engineering Intern

May - August 2021 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

The team environment and respect for work and personal life boundaries were some of my favorite aspects about Ford. I also loved my intern project and the freedom I was given to really make it into my own.

What I wish was different

I wish I had the chance to join my team in person, even if it was not necessary due to the form of my project.

Advice

Communicate, and do it often. If you ever have too much or too little work, have a question, or want to provide your insight, don't hesitate!

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Process engineering intern

August - November 2021 • Chicago, IL

What I liked

Diverse projects and very nice people to work with

What I wish was different

More organized internship program

Advice

To ask a lot of questions

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Product Development Intern

June - July 2020 • San Jose, CA

What I liked

Ford Motor Company taught me so many things including: newly acquired skills, research skills, data analyzing, and forming new relationships with engineers and suppliers virtually. In my internship this past Summer, I learned new skills like failure mode and warranty data analysis. I enjoyed virtually learning how to inspect parts that came to warranty to fix the failure mode issues, social network with other engineers and suppliers, and provide solutions to failure modes and warranty issues to ford management.

What I wish was different

I wish the internship would of had some in-person portions where I could see the vehicles I was working on. This would help me identify failures on the vehicles and get an up-close look of parts failing to see where the failure location was.

Advice

Be proactive on the projects they assign you right away, they are challenging and captivating to challenge you and sharpen your skills when you leave the internship.

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Marketing Intern

June - August 2020 • Dallas, TX

What I liked

What I wish was different

Advice

Make connections and network with your coworkers!

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IT Intern

June - July 2020 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

I liked how smoothly they handled the transition to a completely online internship.

What I wish was different

There wasn't enough instruction, especially for students who've never worked in this type of environment and industry before.

Advice

Ask questions!

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Ford IT Intern

June - August 2020 • Dearborn, MI

What I liked

I had an amazing supervisor and team. They were all very encouraging and had no trouble answering my questions or allowing me to shadow them for a day.

What I wish was different

It would have been great to have the internship in person, but despite being remote, I was able to connect with my team members and build great experiences.

Advice

I would suggest asking as many questions as you can! Everyone is so helpful and willing to help you out. Don't be afraid to reach out and ask others if you can shadow their work for a day. Shadowing others can help you meet new people and gain insight into what they do.

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