Hyo is completing a six-month engineering internship in Arm's GPU Hardware team while studying Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Imperial College London. Read about her experience working on real semiconductor technology, the support she's received and what she's learned during her internship at Arm.
Coming from an electronic engineering background, I always knew I wanted to work in hardware, so Arm immediately stood out because it's one of the leading companies in the industry.
As I learned more about Arm, I realised how many different teams and technologies there are. I knew that if I joined, I'd have lots of opportunities to learn about different roles and discover what interested me most.
I was also really drawn to Arm's 10x mindset. It encourages people to push themselves, try new things and find better ways of working. I knew I'd grow a lot, even in a short amount of time.
I'm part of the GPU Hardware team, where I've been helping develop the debug and trace infrastructure for automotive GPUs. It's been exciting to contribute to technology that supports the development of future products while working on real engineering challenges and learning from experienced engineers across the team.
My day-to-day work includes debugging and tracing using SystemVerilog and C++, as well as contributing to RTL design and architecture work.
One thing that surprised me was how much responsibility I was given. I'm the only intern on my team, so I don't work on a separate intern project. I work alongside the full-time engineers.
Every day starts with a catch-up with my manager to review what I've been working on, ask questions and plan the day ahead. I then work independently, speaking with colleagues whenever I need support before catching up again at the end of the day.
One of the things that stood out most was how supported I felt from the beginning. We had a structured induction, regular check-ins with the Emerging Talent team and weekly one-to-one meetings with my manager. Because we work so closely together, I actually speak with my manager almost every day.
Outside of my team, there's a really strong intern community. We've had lunches together, karaoke evenings and other social events, so there's always someone to talk to.
The difference between university and industry which is the scale. At university, projects are relatively small, but in industry you're working on technology that's been developed over many years. There are huge amounts of documentation and code to understand, so you learn how to identify the gaps in your knowledge and who to ask for help.
I've also learned how important communication is. At Arm, people emphasise that asking questions is important, but how you ask them is just as important.
You learn to explain what you've already looked at, what you understand and where you're stuck. That helps people support you much more effectively.
