Paid Internship Software Development React

Paid Internship — Software Development — React at Interco — Research Report

Introduction

The Paid Internship — Software Development — React role at Interco offers an early-career developer a chance to work on real enterprise software rather than isolated practice projects. The intern would join a development team supporting Enterprise Resource Planning initiatives, translating designs into usable interfaces and contributing code that helps the business manage recycling, metals trading, logistics, and related operations.

The aggregated listing gives a deadline of September 15, 2026; verify the date and application status on Interco’s official posting before applying because listings can change or close early. The role is based in the St. Louis area, is full-time and on-site Monday through Friday, and pays $15 per hour with no additional internship benefits listed.

For a student or recent graduate, the strongest career benefit is practical ownership. This Interco internship can build evidence of professional React development, design-to-code execution, API collaboration, documentation, and enterprise product work—four areas that can make a junior developer résumé substantially more credible.

Overview of Interco

Interco is a St. Louis-headquartered global metals trading and recycling company. It buys, sells, and processes nonferrous metals, computers, batteries, and electronic scrap, working with end consumers and commercial partners across the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Asia.

The company occupies a specialized position between recycling operations, commodity trading, industrial supply, and electronics recovery. Its work includes placing smelter-ready materials with commercial, industrial, dealer, and government customers nationwide. That operating model creates a business environment where software must support tangible workflows: inventory, purchasing, sales, logistics, processing, compliance, and customer coordination.

Interco’s physical footprint includes a main nonferrous facility in Madison, Illinois, computer and electronics processing in Edwardsville, and administrative, logistics, and commercial operations in the St. Louis region. For a software intern, this matters because the products being developed are likely connected to employees and processes outside a conventional office or software-only company.

Interco says it has operated with a focus on innovation and integrity since 1996. Candidates attracted to the company are likely interested in applying technology to a real industrial business, working closely with internal users, and seeing how software decisions affect day-to-day operations. The environment may feel more hands-on and cross-functional than a large technology corporation.

Paid Internship — Software Development — React Role

Role Overview

The Software Development Intern will contribute primarily to frontend work for Interco’s ERP projects. The job centers on converting Figma wireframes into responsive, interactive interfaces and implementing them with React, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS.

This is not simply a learning assignment. A well-built screen can reduce confusion for an operations employee, improve data accuracy, shorten a routine workflow, or make internal tools easier to maintain. The intern’s business impact comes from creating dependable interfaces that match user needs and integrate cleanly with backend services.

Detailed Responsibilities

• Translate Figma wireframes and design concepts into responsive user interfaces.
• Write clean, maintainable React code for web applications.
• Build interactive components with careful attention to layout, states, validation, and usability.
• Collaborate with developers on API integration and data flow.
• Confirm that implemented experiences align with business goals and approved designs.
• Document features, design decisions, implementation strategies, and important technical tradeoffs.
• Review work with teammates and revise code based on feedback.
• Test interfaces across screen sizes and common user scenarios before release.

Day-to-Day Workflow

A realistic day could begin with a short team check-in covering current tickets, design questions, blockers, and integration needs. The intern might then inspect a Figma file, clarify ambiguous behavior with a designer or product stakeholder, and break the work into React components before opening a development branch.

The main workday could include building a form, table, dashboard, or workflow screen; connecting it to an API; handling loading and error states; and checking that the result behaves correctly with realistic data. Afternoon work may involve code review, documentation, bug fixes, and a demonstration to the team. Because the role is on-site, informal conversations may be an important part of resolving requirements quickly.

Tools and Technologies

The clearest technology requirements are React, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Figma, and API integration. Candidates should also expect a professional development environment built around source control, an IDE such as Visual Studio Code, browser developer tools, and a ticket or project-management system, although the public listing does not specify the exact platforms.

• React for component-based frontend development.
• JavaScript for application behavior and data handling.
• HTML and CSS for semantic structure and responsive presentation.
• Figma for inspecting wireframes, spacing, typography, and interaction intent.
• REST-style APIs or comparable services for retrieving and submitting application data.
• Git-based version control and code review workflows, which should be demonstrated in personal projects if not confirmed in the posting.

Skills and Requirements

Technical Skills

The core requirement is the ability to build frontend experiences with React and JavaScript. Strong candidates should understand components, props, state, event handling, conditional rendering, forms, reusable patterns, and basic asynchronous data handling.

HTML and CSS proficiency matters because this role is design-sensitive. An applicant should be comfortable with semantic markup, Flexbox, Grid, responsive breakpoints, accessible labels, keyboard navigation, and visual consistency. Familiarity with browser debugging and basic API concepts will help when a screen works visually but fails to display or submit data correctly.

Figma experience is specifically identified in the listing. The goal is not merely to copy a picture. The intern should be able to inspect a design, identify reusable components, recognize states that may not appear in the mockup, and ask precise questions about empty, loading, error, and validation conditions.

Soft Skills

• Clear communication when requirements or designs are incomplete.
• Attention to detail in spacing, typography, interaction behavior, and data presentation.
• Coachability and willingness to incorporate code-review feedback.
• Ownership of small deliverables from clarification through documentation.
• Patience when working with operational users and unfamiliar business processes.
• Problem-solving ability when frontend behavior depends on APIs or legacy workflows.

Experience Expectations

Interco is seeking someone currently pursuing or recently completing a technical degree. The public posting does not state a GPA cutoff, so a strong portfolio can matter more than an impressive academic number. One polished React project is more persuasive than several unfinished tutorials.

Useful portfolio examples include an inventory dashboard, order-management interface, searchable table, multi-step form, or API-powered administrative tool. Each project should explain the problem, the design decisions, the technologies used, and what changed after testing or feedback.

Salary and Benefits

The listed compensation is $15 per hour, and the posting says the internship does not offer additional benefits. At 40 hours per week for 12 weeks, that represents approximately $7,200 before taxes; a 16-week schedule would total approximately $9,600 before taxes. Treat these as planning estimates, not guaranteed totals.

Marketed software internships in the broader St. Louis area can pay more, but direct comparison is imperfect because employers differ in benefits, project scope, schedule, and selectivity. The practical value of this opportunity is its exposure to React, Figma-to-code implementation, ERP projects, and on-site collaboration.

The public listing does not promise remote work, a learning budget, stipend, or conversion to full-time employment. It explicitly states that the position is on-site and provides no additional benefits. Candidates should ask during the interview whether strong interns are considered for junior development roles and what performance evidence supports conversion.

Interco Hiring Process

Step-by-Step Hiring Stages

1. Application: Submit a résumé that clearly matches React, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Figma, and technical education requirements.
2. Screening: A recruiter or hiring manager may confirm availability, location, on-site expectations, education, and project experience.
3. Assignment: Candidates may be asked to explain or build a small interface, although the public listing does not confirm a formal coding test.
4. Interviews: Expect discussion of React fundamentals, design implementation, teamwork, debugging, and interest in Interco’s business.
5. Offer: The selected candidate should confirm hourly pay, schedule, start date, on-site location, and any conversion discussion in writing.

Application Timeline

Apply well before the aggregated deadline of September 15, 2026, and verify the date on the live Interco posting before submitting. A sensible process could take one to several weeks depending on interview scheduling, assignment review, and internal approval.

Because the role requires weekday on-site work, candidates should resolve transportation, class schedules, relocation, and start-date questions before applying. Stating a precise availability window is more useful than writing that availability is “flexible.”

Screening Methods

An ATS or recruiter will likely look for terms that closely match the posting: React, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Figma, frontend development, responsive design, API integration, and documentation. Place these terms naturally in a technical-skills section and within project descriptions.

Link to a working portfolio, GitHub repository, or deployed demo when possible. Make sure the repository includes a readable README, setup instructions, screenshots, and a short explanation of the applicant’s individual contribution.

Interview Preparation

Example Interview Questions

• How would you turn a Figma wireframe into reusable React components?
• How would you handle loading, empty, error, and success states when a page uses an API?
• Describe a time you received critical feedback on a project and changed your implementation.
• Why are you interested in applying frontend development to Interco’s recycling and trading operations?

How to Answer

Use a concise structure: explain the situation, identify the task, describe the technical actions you took, and finish with the result. For project answers, name the actual component or feature, explain the tradeoff, and include a measurable or observable outcome such as faster completion, fewer errors, improved mobile behavior, or clearer code.

For technical questions, talk through assumptions before coding. Explain how you would inspect the design, model component boundaries, manage state, handle API failures, test the result, and confirm accessibility. A thoughtful process can compensate for limited professional experience.

What Recruiters Evaluate

• Whether the candidate can meet the required on-site schedule.
• Evidence of genuine React and frontend practice.
• Visual accuracy and attention to detail.
• Ability to explain code without hiding behind jargon.
• Response to feedback and unfamiliar requirements.
• Interest in building useful software for a non-software industry.

How to Get Selected

Practical Tips

• Build a small React ERP-style interface with a searchable table, form validation, and API-backed detail view.
• Recreate one Figma screen and show both the original design and final implementation.
• Include responsive behavior, keyboard access, loading states, and error handling in portfolio work.
• Rewrite résumé bullets around outcomes: “Built a React inventory dashboard consuming a REST API” is stronger than “Worked on a website.”
• Practice explaining one project in 90 seconds and one technical decision in five minutes.
• Research Interco’s recycling, metals, electronics, and logistics operations so business questions do not feel unexpected.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Applying with a résumé that lists React but provides no project evidence.
• Ignoring the on-site Monday-through-Friday requirement.
• Submitting a visually impressive demo with broken links, missing instructions, or no source code.
• Treating Figma as a screenshot rather than a source of interaction and layout requirements.
• Failing to discuss API errors, empty states, accessibility, and maintainability.
• Assuming benefits or full-time conversion exist when the posting does not promise them.

How to Stand Out

Create a focused submission that mirrors Interco’s likely environment: an operations dashboard with filters, status indicators, a responsive data table, and a detail form. Document why each component exists, how the data flows, and what you would improve with more time.

Networking can help, but it should be specific. A message to an Interco employee or recruiter should mention the React role, the candidate’s relevant project, comfort with on-site work, and one thoughtful question about the team’s ERP development process.

Final Thoughts

The Interco internship is a practical entry point for someone who wants more than classroom exercises. It combines React development, visual implementation, documentation, API collaboration, and exposure to software supporting a global recycling and metals business.

Before applying, verify the September 15, 2026 deadline, confirm the exact on-site location, and prepare a portfolio that proves the required skills. Candidates who show dependable frontend fundamentals, careful design execution, and genuine curiosity about Interco’s operations will be better positioned to get hired at Interco.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is The Salary?

The listed pay is $15 per hour. The posting states that the internship does not offer additional benefits.

How Competitive Is Hiring?

The public listing does not provide an acceptance rate or applicant count. Competition is likely to come from students and recent graduates with React portfolios, so a polished project and clear availability can materially improve an application.

What Skills Matter Most?

React, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Figma, responsive interface development, API collaboration, documentation, and attention to detail are the most directly relevant skills identified in the posting. Communication and coachability will also matter because the work involves translating designs and business goals with a development team.