http://www.rockwellautomation.com/

Rockwell Automation

Software Engineering Co-op

January - August 2019 • Mayfield Hts, OH

What I liked

Everyone at Rockwell is very helpful and wants to see you succeed. The software engineering managers are fantastic. The company really stresses work-life balance, especially for co-ops. I was given a combination of projects meant for co-ops (easier, occasionally tedious) and real development work. I learned a lot from everything that I worked on, and I feel that my ability to contribute to what the real employees were working on really set this co-op experience apart.

What I wish was different

I wish that the technology that I had gotten to work with was more modern. Most of Rockwell's software engineering department works on legacy C++ / MFC / COM code at the moment, and that isn't the most pleasant development experience. However, this is changing as Rockwell moves towards updating its products to more modern tech stacks. The mentoring system can be hit or miss depending on who your mentor is. However, you can always find more knowledgeable people willing to help you if you just ask them some questions.

Advice

I would suggest that you work hard to finish your initial tasks and ask for additional projects. Once you get a grasp on the code-base and complete some smaller tasks, they will likely give you real work. The real work isn't more or less difficult, but you get to interact more with the full-time engineers, and therefore learn more.
1 One person found this helpful

Sales Intern (Wholesale and Manufacturing)

May - August 2017 • Denver, CO

What I liked

Flexibility in schedule and how to achieve goals.

What I wish was different

More of a specific focus early on because the company is too large to be able to get a strong grasp of a wide range of things in a short amount of time.

Advice

Sometimes it takes a long time before you begin to feel comfortable in a new job. Give it time before making your mind up that you don't like your current job/company.
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Embedded Software Engineering Intern

June - August 2018 • Milwaukee, WI

What I liked

It was great first experience. I was able to talk to multiple managers and connect with other interns.

What I wish was different

I didn't enjoy my position and the work I was doing.

Advice

Take advantage of the opportunity to network and meet new people.
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Test Engineer Intern

May - August 2018 • Mequon, WI

What I liked

At my internship, I was given almost total independence. I didn’t have to clock in or out, and I wasn’t constantly being checked in on. When I was given a task, I was always encouraged to check with my supervisor when clarification was needed; otherwise, my superiors trusted that I was doing what I was supposed to be doing. Compared to previous jobs where I felt like I was treated far younger than my age even though I knew that I could handle the level of responsibility I was given, I really enjoyed this aspect. With that independence came the expectation that I was doing my job. I would be proud of myself for figuring out a complicated obstacle when writing a code, and I was excited to receive praise for it. But I came to learn that all my superiors cared about was the final product and that it worked, correctly. They didn’t know or care about the individual obstacles I faced when getting to the final product. This was hard for me to adjust to, but I learned that as long as I was proud of my work and my superiors were satisfied with the results that was enough. During my internship, I presented to a group of high school students about my department’s work and my project work, so far. I also completed an intern readout video near the end of my intern experience. These tasks gave me the opportunity to reflect on what I had done and learned throughout this experience. I directly witnessed how all the different types of engineers doing different jobs came together, interacted, and ultimately relied on one another. I shared a cubicle with two mechanical engineer interns, so I also got to learn about the projects they were working on, and could see how down the line they interacted with the work I was doing. My understanding of how each part of the company worked together, from hardware to firmware to software, from employee to customer, from drawing to prototype to product, grew as I learned more about the company, my duties, and my co-workers duties. Knowing these connections gives me a better understanding of my options for moving forward in an electrical engineering career.

What I wish was different

Regarding my future, my internship taught me I would rather do hardware, circuit boards and drive design, than software, coding, after being exposed to both areas. But overall, the classes I’ve taken up to this point, along with this internship, have reinforced that I’ve chosen the right major. They’ve also kept me excited about taking more specific classes and looking for other internship opportunities in the future. I also wish that I had been given the opportunity to work on, or at least learn about, other projects that were related to my test group. My main experience was all focused on one drive/simulator.

Advice

Go into an internship experience eager to learn new things and try things you're not completely comfortable with. Take every opportunity possible to learn about new projects or ideas that your coworkers are working on to get as much knowledge as possible during your time there. Also, make friends with coworkers and fellow interns to get as much help and networking as you can.
7 ${count} people found this helpful

AI/ML intern

May - August 2018 • Milwaukee, WI

What I liked

The culture

What I wish was different

More travel

Advice

Network with everyone
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Application Engineering Intern

May - August 2018 • Nashville, TN

What I liked

I really enjoyed the autonomy I had during my internship. My supervisor game me a set of goals to meet, but it was really up to me to figure out how to accomplish them. Rockwell also has a fantastic company culture and every employees loves to talk about what they do. I had the opportunity to network with several of Rockwell's patent engineers and attorneys which was fantastic as I want to be in that field someday.

What I wish was different

My project was in VBA and SQL Server so creating a Github repository would have been a difficult challenge. I would have enjoyed the summer more if it was easier to integrate my code into the rest of the database.

Advice

Make the most of your summer internship and don't be afraid to talk to anyone - you never know what might happen!
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Information Technology Intern

May 2018 • Milwaukee, WI

What I liked

Great culture and I learned a lot. Was given a lot of opportunities to do real, meaningful work

What I wish was different

Nothing

Advice

It is what you make of it, so ask for work and stay engaged
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Software Engineering Co Op

May 2018 • Mayfield Hts, OH

What I liked

The projects I am a part of have a real impact on the product and will be used by other teams as reference too. I am able to work with Rockwell's main software and enormous codebase and make fixes myself to the code. The things I am doing are represented in the software and not just menial tasks. Everyone is friendly and helpful and wants you to improve and do well.

What I wish was different

Sometimes I finished most of my work and had leftover time that I had to kill. I usually spend it reading coding books though so it isn't detrimental. But there are times I could do more for the company.

Advice

Great company, great culture, everyone is friendly and helpful, great onboarding to learning new languages, I have no regrets and would go through the process all over again having spent 5 months here.
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Sales Operations Analyst

May - August 2018 • Mayfield Hts, OH

What I liked

Boss was nice and friendly

What I wish was different

I wish I had a team and there was more collaboration involved. My work was nearly 100% independent and could have been done remotely. I worked with no other interns, or any other employee throughout the summer, and ended up having little interaction with my boss, which would have been nice to have more of.

Advice

If you find yourself bored, find work to do and make connections with others in the company to learn about its different functions.
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Finance Intern

June - August 2018 • Milwaukee, WI

What I liked

I liked how much my team involved me in their work. I wasn't doing grunt work. I had an extremely meaningful experience and worked with great people over all.

What I wish was different

I wish I had come in with more Excel skills, that certainly would have helped. I did feel I was expected to know more than I did at times.

Advice

I would definitely say to come in with an open mind, ask lots of questions and don't be shy about how you are feeling. There are a lot of great people and resources at Rockwell and they want you to walk away with a great experience.
2 ${count} people found this helpful

Software Engineer Intern

May 2018 • Mayfield Hts, OH

What I liked

I felt trusted in the company to take on big projects. I was free to go where my work ethic took me.

What I wish was different

Advice

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Sales Intern

May - August 2018 • Englewood, CO

What I liked

The people I worked with, the independence, and the management were all great.

What I wish was different

Advice

Be assertive and be a self starter.
Be the first to mark this as helpful

Application Engineer

May 2018 • Milwaukee, WI

What I liked

I really liked the work that I was doing when I was there, they gave meaningful projects to interns.

What I wish was different

I think the on boarding process was longer than expected.

Advice

Be the first to mark this as helpful
1 2