How To Become An Industrial Design Internship: What It Is and Career Path

What is an industrial design internship and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted experts

Abby Guido,

Jessa Wilcoxen

If you plan on pursuing a career in designing new products, then an industrial design internship is the first step towards achieving that goal. Although industrial designers work in a variety of fields, whatever that may be, your specific purpose as an industrial design intern will be to assist the designers in combining art, business, and engineering to develop concepts for manufactured products.

Some of the duties and responsibilities that you will be performing in this capacity include assisting the designers in consulting with managers and clients about design requirements, negotiation of contracts, solving problems regarding the design of products, conducting research of current and new design trends and influences, and correcting faulty products. Essential skills required to complete these tasks successfully include communication, creativity, organization, and interpersonal skills.

Since this is an internship, individuals applying will typically be required to have a high school diploma and will be in the progress of completing their bachelor's degree. No prior work experience is required. The average hourly pay for this position is $21.95. This internship will give you the chance to gain insight into the professional field, along with networking opportunities that might help you land a permanent position in the future.

What general advice would you give to an industrial design internship?

Abby Guido

Assistant Professor, Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University

We've all heard the buzz about networking, and there is so much buzz because it works. Make sure your LinkedIn profile is both up to date and active. Connect with all of your past professors, classmates, and anyone and everyone you meet in a professional setting. I often tell students to get into the habit of searching for any classroom guests, or guest lecturers, to connect, thank them for their time, and build their network. Share content. Write articles, or reshare those you find interesting.

Every job I have ever received in my career has been through someone else I know. I share this with students to help them see the value in relationships. I always remember the students that took the time to write a handwritten thank-you note. And I think of them when I get an email asking if I know any students are looking for work.

ScoreIndustrial Design InternshipUS Average

Salary

5.1

Avg. Salary $65,869

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.5

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.38%

Asian 10.07%

Black or African American 1.12%

Hispanic or Latino 7.28%

Unknown 4.48%

White 76.67%

Gender

female 28.24%

male 71.76%

Age - 38

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 38

Stress level

7.5

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.5

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

5.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an industrial design internship

Explore industrial design internship education requirements

Most common industrial design internship degrees

Bachelor's

85.9 %

Associate

6.3 %

High School Diploma

3.4 %

Start to develop specific industrial design internship skills

Skills	Percentages
Industrial Design	12.64%
Solidworks	10.24%
KeyShot	9.17%
CAD	8.65%
Sketch	4.77%

Complete relevant industrial design internship training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New industrial design interns learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an industrial design internship based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real industrial design internship resumes.

Research industrial design internship duties and responsibilities

Manage the website and twitter page, write the blog posts and attend numerous fashion shows and sample sale rooms.
Solve product function, ergonomics and user experience through sketch modeling, prototyping and product testing.
Support the design team in the brainstorming, conceptualization, and prototyping phase of various consumer electronics and medical devices.
Submit sketch of device to client, receive approval and device are built.

Prepare your industrial design internship resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your industrial design internship resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an industrial design internship resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable industrial design internship resume templates

Build a professional industrial design internship resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your industrial design internship resume.