Ask HN: How do students find startups to intern at?
If you are a student who is interested in working at a startup, how can you find a suitable startup that is interested in taking interns?
Didn't work: reading techcrunch and HN waiting for a great startup to drift by. I reached out to a few of the companies that were big on HN and TC, but at that time (because they were on TC and HN) they were swamped with emails and usually at a critical stage in the companies growth. Thus, wasn't a great time to try and chat.
Beyond that, I couldn't get a great feel for the companies (the people)from their sites alone. And this is just as important as the idea, if not more.
Worked: Talking to people who you know in SF and in the startup world. I spoke with a friend of mine at a startup - he introduced me to other friends. who introduced me to other friends. and before you know it I had a dozen phone calls lined up. I think I was able to get passed along for a few reasons: -I had a good short blurb on myself that folks could forward along. It showed that I was hungry. -I had a personal website so that people could read about what I was up to. -I knew what size company I wanted and was flexible with pay.
Also worked: talking to recruiters at VC firms and incubators. They have tons of contacts and know great places to look.
If you have ones in mind, then sure. reach out. I found that people are surprisingly friendly to young folks who want to learn.
there are some online resources but they are not well curated.
You can intern with me if you like :)
jagkg@sloan.mit.edu