Internship Experience at Texas Instruments feat WISH

During the summer of 2023, I had the opportunity to complete an internship at Texas Instruments, Bangalore. I worked as a Digital Design Intern for a duration of two months. My internship was in the Physical Design team, which focuses on tasks such as Placement and Routing. This involves taking the RTL (Register Transfer Level) designs from the design team and transforming them into GDS (Graphic Data Stream) format, which can then be sent to the foundry for chip fabrication.

Throughout my internship, I gained insights into the functioning of the semiconductor industry and observed the extensive influence of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence across various domains in electronics. Contrary to common expectations, Texas Instruments, despite being a large corporation, emphasizes fundamental knowledge during their tests and interviews. They hold the belief that foundational solid understanding is essential for tackling real-world challenges. They believe that possessing a solid grasp of fundamentals, logical reasoning skills, and common sense equips individuals to grasp the concepts necessary for solving industry-level projects.

The corporate culture at Texas Instruments is commendable, as it encourages open interaction with everyone, even from higher-ups like the Managing Director to newly hired College Graduates. You have the freedom to engage with any employee to seek clarifications or discuss projects and related matters. They are approachable and willing to assist if they have the knowledge, or they'll direct you to the appropriate person who can provide guidance. What particularly appealed to me is that, as an intern, you don't sense a hierarchical "working under" dynamic but rather a collaborative "working with" environment. Even mentors might not necessarily possess a complete understanding of the challenges you're addressing; they are also in a learning process alongside you, progressively providing assistance.

I secured this internship through WISH (Women in Semiconductors and Hardware), an initiative started by our batch. Its aim is to encourage women to pursue careers in the semiconductor domain, countering the allure of highly paid software positions. To earn this opportunity, I completed an aptitude test and an interview at the end of my second year. The questions posed were centered around fundamental concepts I had covered up to that point, like Electric circuits and networks, and digital systems. My recommendation to you is to thoroughly grasp the subjects you'll study in the second and third years. Couple that with a dash of enthusiasm and interest, and you'll be positioning yourself for success in reputable companies like Texas Instruments.