Contents
- Choosing a profession and getting into ITMO
- How and where to find opportunities at the university
- YADRO AI School: your ticket to a paid internship
- Internship step by step: how to prove yourself to the company
- Tips for aspiring IT specialists
From family heritage to data science
I grew up in a family of engineers in a closed town in the Ural region. The town had only one industrial enterprise, where my father worked as the chief engineer. My parents often shared stories about their work, which exposed me to the field of engineering from an early age. Moreover, I had a strong interest in mathematics and computer science at school, and these subjects came naturally to me. All this ultimately led me to pursue an engineering degree after graduation.
I began looking for universities that aligned with my interests and came across ITMO University, which I eventually decided to apply to. ITMO is well known for its strong technical foundation, and it also offered a program that suited my goals perfectly – Robotics and Artificial Intelligence (implemented by the Faculty of Control Systems and Robotics – Ed.)
In my opinion, this last aspect is particularly important. I am already exploring potential Master’s programs and paying close attention to their industry partners. Studying in programs that have well-defined corporate partnerships provides a real opportunity to interact with professionals from these companies, visit their offices and production facilities, and apply for internships.
At ITMO, I began exploring different fields. I talked with my classmates about what they were passionate about and took part in hackathons, intensive courses, and academic competitions. My goal was not to win but to understand what kinds of problems professionals in these areas work on and whether this field was right for me personally. Over time, I realized that I was most interested in the intersection of data science and ML engineering: analyzing data, identifying patterns, and building machine learning models based on them.
Finding competitions and internships: where to start
The university’s сareer сenter. ITMO has a dedicated Career Services Center that organizes career days, meetups with partner representatives, workshops, and other events. These are not the typical sessions where someone simply stands by a branded booth, but rather engaging and practical activities that allow students to interact directly with professionals from various fields.
University’s online resources. On ISU (the university’s internal information system), announcements are posted about competitions, hackathons, and schools organized by ITMO. Updates about these activities are also shared on the social media pages of various departments – nearly every faculty and department has its own channels and communities online. If you study in a similar field to mine, for example, you can follow the social media pages of the Faculty of Control Systems and Robotics or Artificial Intelligence Technologies Faculty.
The online platform Kaggle.com. This is an open platform that hosts a vast amount of information on data science and machine learning. It also regularly organizes hackathons. Some companies even note in their job descriptions that they’ll consider an applicant’s personal Kaggle ranking. Based on my own experience, this is indeed true – interviewers pay attention to your Kaggle competition results.
On job sites like HeadHunter, Dream Jobs, and company websites. There are hundreds of listings out there, but not all of them are right for students without experience. At first, it’s worth just checking out which IT companies are out there and browsing their websites. That’s usually where you’ll find info about internships for beginners.
University networking. A university is, first and foremost, about people. The more people you meet and talk to, the more you find out – including about internships and other cool opportunities. Friends or teammates from projects can recommend you to a company where they’re already working or interning, or simply give you tips on how to apply. Professors sometimes also invite students to join projects they’re involved in.
It’s also worth paying attention to company-run intensives and short schools. They’re great for learning new things and can even help you get a recommendation or an internship offer. That’s actually how it happened for me with YADRO.
Credit: ITMO Mediaportal
YADRO AI School: live coding, insider knowledge, and a fast track to an internship
I first heard about YADRO AI School, a joint program by YADRO and ITMO’s Higher School of Digital Culture, from one of my professors who taught there. YADRO specializes in computer vision and machine learning – exactly the areas I focus on in both my studies and now in my professional path. So I jumped at the chance to learn more about it directly from people working in the field.I also knew that YADRO interns often end up staying with the company. One of my friends did an internship there a few years ago and now works full-time at YADRO. What really drew me in was that the school offers a full educational program that fits right alongside your Bachelor’s studies. That’s rare – most options out there are short intensives or Master’s-level tracks.
The course was meant for Master’s students, but I managed to get in and complete it. Classes were held in the evenings, and the workload was pretty reasonable. At first, we learned about ML models and neural network architectures that are now widely used in the industry. Then came the practical part: we explored specific models, how they work, and what kinds of problems they solve. After that, we started coding from scratch ourselves. It was tough at times, but it really helped connect theory with practice. We also took part in Kaggle competitions from time to time.
Participants who completed practical tasks ahead of others and achieved top results in competitions received extra points. These were accumulated throughout the course, and by the end, the highest-ranking students were awarded recommendations or fast-track offers for summer internships at YADRO. I ended up among those lucky ones and applied for the internship.
Working at YADRO
Step 1. Summer internship
I applied through the open competition, attached a recommendation, and mentioned that I had completed the YADRO AI School program. I passed all the selection stages, completed the test task, and finally reached the interview with my future mentor. The skills I gained during the school really helped – they made it easier to handle the test and discuss my school projects confidently during the interview.
The summer internship lasted seven weeks. Along with professional meetups and workshops to improve our soft skills, the main focus was on YADRO’s real projects. We could choose tasks that interested us from a long list, come up with solutions together with our mentors, and later present and analyze the results.
There was enough time to dive into the project and figure out all the details. Plus, mentors were always ready to help. It never felt like we were left to handle everything on our own.
Step 2. Getting an offer for a long-term internship
When the summer internship wrapped up, we met with our mentors one last time to discuss the results and share feedback. Those who performed well – including me – were offered a chance to stay on for a longer, paid internship.
Step 3. Working as a junior engineering intern
Right now, I’m part of the Computer Vision (CV) software development team. We build digital products that use machine learning and computer vision – for example, systems for optical quality and safety control in manufacturing. I’m not doing “student tasks” anymore but working together with the team on real projects for clients.
In our department at YADRO, there’s a simple rule: if you’re still a student, you’re an intern. And I totally agree with that, because a long-term internship means:
- A part-time schedule – about 30 hours a week.
- Flexible hours that can easily be adjusted to your class timetable.
- Work with a mentor. The format is almost the same as during the summer internship. Of course, interns don’t have as much responsibility as full-time employees, but that’s the beauty of it – you can try new things, experiment, and learn without being afraid to make mistakes.
Tips for aspiring IT specialists
Internships and competitions are great, but don’t get too carried away. Make sure to dedicate enough time to your studies – that’s where you build the foundation you’ll rely on later. If you skip that part, it’ll definitely show in your work down the line.
Use your time and energy smartly. You need to know when it’s better to spend the evening on a lab report and when to focus completely on an internship task.
Set clear, measurable goals – but stay flexible. Things are changing fast, and sticking too hard to a long-term plan can make you miss great opportunities. I’d suggest setting goals for a shorter period, like up to a year, and making sure they match what you can realistically achieve.
Expand the list of IT companies where you would like to complete an internship or work. Getting into tech giants is tough, and for a first job, smaller and more focused companies are often a better choice. They usually hire interns for specific roles, so employers are genuinely interested in helping newcomers learn quickly. That’s why such internships often turn into full-time jobs.
Translated by Evgeniya Sotnikova
