This summer, I had the pleasure of working at Medtronic in Santa Rosa, CA (a little north of SF) as an R&D Engineering intern. Coming into my internship, I expected to spend most of my time in a lab tightening bolts, prototyping devices, and running physical tests like a “normal” mechanical engineering intern. But from the moment I started, it was clear this experience would be anything but traditional.
As a mechanical engineering major with a minor in artificial intelligence applications, I’ve always been curious about the intersection of hardware and software. At Medtronic, I got to explore that intersection in real-time. I found myself working primarily on the software and data side of engineering; analyzing medical device performance, applying machine learning models, and using tools like Python and LS-DYNA to support simulation and product design. While I wasn’t building devices by hand every day, I was still helping build the foundation for better, safer tools that will one day help patients worldwide.
One of the most surprising parts of the internship was how much autonomy I had. I was encouraged to explore tools and frameworks I hadn’t used before, and I quickly became the go-to person for specific modeling techniques on my team. My coursework helped me think critically about data quality, modeling accuracy, and building reliable and interpretable systems. It was validating to see that the skills I’ve been developing in class are not only relevant in industry but essential.
Of course, Medtronic also made sure the summer wasn’t all work. Our intern cohort had a blast outside the office, too. We went canoeing, hit up Six Flags, and spent an afternoon battling it out at an arcade. I even got to dissect real animal hearts as part of a training experience (something I was not assss excited for). Being based in Santa Rosa didn’t hurt either; the views were stunning, and the weekend hikes didn’t disappoint.
Looking back, this internship confirmed a lot about the kind of work I want to do, and opened up new possibilities I hadn’t considered before. I still love building things, but now I see the value in combining that mechanical foundation with the power of data and software. Whether I continue in medical devices or branch into other fields, I want to keep working at that intersection, where engineering meets insight, and innovation meets impact.
