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How Inneract Project empowers brown and black designers | Figma Blog (opens in new tab)

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The article highlights ten UI/UX design internships recommended by Figma users, arguing that the best programs offer meaningful design work, mentorship, user research, and opportunities to learn—not merely perks or high compensation. Across companies ranging from Shopify and Facebook to Hotels.ng and Palantir, interns are given varying degrees of responsibility, collaboration, and professional guidance. The strongest internships help students build practical skills and often lead to full-time employment.

What Makes an Internship Valuable?

  • Respondents valued opportunities to practice design, conduct real user testing, and learn from experienced professionals.
  • Mentorship was a recurring theme:
    • Shopify assigns every intern a staff mentor.
    • Spotify provides interns with a designated mentor or manager.
  • Perks such as catered meals, generous stipends, travel credits, and office amenities were appreciated but considered secondary to meaningful work and learning.

Shopify

  • Places interns on cross-functional teams to develop communication and collaboration skills.
  • Design interns work on deployable products, including Timeline.
  • Approximately 80% of interns reportedly return to Shopify or become full-time employees.
  • Strong emphasis on individual mentorship.

Hotels.ng

  • Offers a remote, paid UI/UX internship for Nigerian residents through a partnership with the Akwa Ibom State government.
  • Interns must complete assigned tasks successfully to remain in the program.
  • The program lasts three months.
  • Many graduates receive full-time offers from Hotels.ng or other local companies.

Facebook

  • Provides a reported average stipend of about $5,600 per month.
  • Interns receive substantial responsibility and are treated similarly to full-time employees.
  • The work environment is described as resembling an intensive “college campus.”

Spotify

  • Runs a ten-week program organized into close-knit squads and two-week sprints.
  • Interns are treated as “band members,” reinforcing the company’s collaborative culture.
  • The product design program is highly design-focused, with strong expectations for visual craft.
  • Mentorship and free food are notable parts of the experience.

Salesforce

  • Its Futureforce program gives interns meaningful projects and opportunities to learn design systems.
  • Interns participate in social events with executives and receive up to seven days of Volunteer Time Off.
  • The program combines professional development with networking and community activities.

Uber

  • Offers health benefits, unlimited vacation, and Uber credits.
  • Interns work in an intense but rewarding environment.
  • Product design interns may have direct access to senior leaders, whose willingness to listen can give interns significant influence.

IBM

  • Austin’s Maelstrom program guides roughly 15 young designers through four tracks:
    • Design research
    • Visual design
    • UX design
    • Front-end development
  • Program leaders attribute its success partly to an emphasis on emotional intelligence.

Airbnb

  • Known for a strong design culture, influenced in part by its designer co-founders.
  • Offers a close-knit, progressive, and innovative work environment.
  • Interns receive travel credits and access to extensive employee perks.
  • The company was ranked highly as a workplace in 2016.

Square

  • Gives interns flexibility to explore different types of design problems as their interests develop.
  • Recognized for efforts to address gender inequality in technology.
  • Interns may work beyond conventional UI design, with opportunities to approach problems creatively and artistically.

Palantir

  • Product design interns focus on solving complex problems rather than making minor visual adjustments.
  • The company’s open-source Blueprint style guide reduces repetitive interface work.
  • The program emphasizes product thinking and meaningful design challenges.

Practical Takeaway

When evaluating internships, prioritize mentorship, real product responsibility, cross-functional collaboration, and opportunities to learn from feedback. Compensation and perks are useful, but a program that develops practical design skills and provides a path to future employment is likely to have the greatest long-term value.