Software Engineering Intern

Software Engineering Intern at Workiva — Research Report

Introduction

A Software Engineering Intern at Workiva works on real cloud software rather than isolated classroom exercises. The role typically combines feature development, testing, code reviews, debugging, and collaboration with experienced engineers on products used for financial reporting, risk, compliance, audit, and sustainability workflows.

The internship period and application deadline are not specified in the information available here, so candidates should verify the current posting status before applying. Recent listings describe a remote United States opportunity and indicate compensation of approximately $40 per hour for the Software Engineering Intern position.

This Workiva internship can be especially valuable for students who want experience in enterprise SaaS, modern web development, agile delivery, and highly regulated business domains. It also offers a practical way to demonstrate readiness for a full-time software engineering role.

Overview of Workiva

Workiva provides an AI-enabled, cloud-based platform that connects data, processes, and people across finance, risk, sustainability, audit, governance, and compliance teams. Its software helps organizations prepare, manage, review, and report information that must be accurate, traceable, and often subject to regulatory scrutiny.

The company occupies a specialized position between enterprise software, data management, reporting technology, and governance platforms. Its competitive environment includes financial reporting, enterprise performance management, governance-risk-compliance, audit, and sustainability software providers. Workiva’s differentiation comes from connecting traditionally fragmented reporting processes in one collaborative cloud environment.

Key product areas include financial reporting, environmental and sustainability reporting, internal controls, risk management, audit workflows, and regulatory compliance. These products serve organizations where data lineage, permissions, review history, and dependable collaboration matter as much as the user interface.

That context changes what engineering quality means. An intern is not merely building a visually appealing feature; the work may affect reporting accuracy, customer trust, security, accessibility, or the ability to produce evidence during an audit.

Workiva is also known for supporting distributed work. Current internship listings describe roles as primarily remote while allowing employees near office hubs to use hybrid arrangements. This flexibility appeals to students who can work independently but still communicate consistently through digital tools.

Software Engineering Intern Role

Role Overview

The Software Engineering Intern implements developer tools or product features under the direction of a senior developer. The internship may place a student on either a frontend or backend project, depending on team needs, and the work follows an agile development methodology.

Day-to-day responsibilities generally involve taking a small, well-defined piece of work from planning through implementation, testing, review, and release. The strongest interns learn how their code fits into a larger service, how product decisions affect customers, and how engineering teams manage quality on a rapid-release cycle.

Detailed Responsibilities

• Implement frontend or backend features for Workiva products.
• Build or improve internal developer tools.
• Write readable, maintainable code under senior-engineer guidance.
• Create and maintain unit tests for new or modified behavior.
• Participate in code reviews and respond constructively to feedback.
• Investigate defects using logs, test results, reproduction steps, and debugging tools.
• Collaborate with product managers, designers, quality engineers, and other developers.
• Document technical decisions, setup instructions, or operational considerations.
• Participate in agile planning, standups, demonstrations, and retrospectives.

Day-to-Day Workflow

A typical remote workday may begin with a team standup conducted through video conferencing or chat. The intern explains progress, identifies blockers, and confirms the next task. The remainder of the morning might involve reviewing a ticket, examining existing code, and discussing an implementation approach with a mentor.

After writing code, the intern would usually run local tests, add coverage for edge cases, and open a pull request. Review comments may lead to revisions involving naming, error handling, performance, accessibility, or test design. Later in the day, the intern might join a refinement session, pair with another engineer, or demonstrate a completed feature.

Remote success depends on visible progress. Asking a focused question after investigating the issue, documenting assumptions, and posting concise updates are often more effective than waiting silently for the next meeting.

Tools and Technologies

The exact stack depends on the team, but candidates should expect common enterprise web-development practices. Recent role descriptions reference TypeScript-related frontend work and identify frontend and backend engineering as possible assignments.

• Programming languages such as JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, Python, or similar technologies.
• Web frameworks and component libraries for user-facing application development.
• REST or service-oriented APIs for connecting application layers.
• Git-based version control and pull-request workflows.
• Automated unit, integration, and end-to-end testing tools.
• Continuous integration and deployment pipelines.
• Issue tracking, documentation, observability, and team communication platforms.
• Cloud infrastructure and database technologies appropriate to enterprise SaaS.

Skills and Requirements

Technical Skills

A competitive applicant should be comfortable with at least one programming language and understand core computer science concepts. Data structures, algorithms, object-oriented design, debugging, HTTP, APIs, databases, and testing are more useful than memorizing a long list of frameworks.

Frontend candidates should be able to explain component structure, state management, asynchronous requests, browser behavior, responsive design, and accessibility. Backend candidates should understand API design, validation, authentication concepts, database interactions, error handling, and service reliability.

Because Workiva serves finance, audit, risk, and compliance users, attention to data correctness is critical. A strong candidate thinks about permissions, malformed input, auditability, privacy, and failure scenarios rather than only the happy path.

Soft Skills

• Clear written communication in a remote environment.
• Comfort receiving and applying code-review feedback.
• Curiosity about unfamiliar systems and business domains.
• Persistence when debugging ambiguous technical problems.
• Reliable follow-through on commitments.
• Ability to explain technical decisions to non-specialists.
• Willingness to collaborate across engineering and product functions.

Experience Expectations

Intern candidates are generally expected to be enrolled in a degree-seeking program, although the specific academic requirements should be confirmed in the active posting. A portfolio does not need to contain a major commercial application. One polished project with meaningful engineering decisions is more persuasive than several unfinished tutorials.

Useful examples include a full-stack application with authentication and tests, a data-processing tool, a collaborative web application, or an open-source contribution. GPA may be considered, but practical evidence of problem-solving, learning speed, and teamwork can strengthen an application when experience is limited.

Salary and Benefits

Available listings indicate an estimated Software Engineering Intern rate of approximately $40 per hour in the United States. At 40 hours per week for a 12-week summer internship, that equates to roughly $19,200 before taxes, although the actual total depends on the official duration and schedule.

Benefits vary by internship program and should be verified in the offer. Workiva internship listings reference remote work within the employee’s country of employment, and other internship postings mention 401(k) participation and matching. Candidates should also ask about equipment, paid time off, relocation assistance, mentorship, and eligibility for a return offer.

Full-time conversion is never automatic, but interns who deliver dependable work, communicate well, and build relationships with their team are often better positioned for future opportunities. Treat the internship as an extended evaluation period, not merely a temporary course requirement.

Workiva Hiring Process

Step-by-Step Hiring Stages

1. Application: Submit a tailored resume, education details, project information, and work authorization responses.
2. Screening: A recruiter may discuss coursework, availability, location, technical interests, and communication style.
3. Assignment: Some candidates may complete a coding assessment or technical exercise focused on problem-solving.
4. Interviews: Expect technical, behavioral, and team-focused conversations with engineers or hiring managers.
5. Offer: Selected candidates receive details about pay, dates, remote expectations, equipment, and program conditions.

Application Timeline

Engineering internships often recruit months before the start date, particularly for summer programs. Available Workiva internship information has referenced fall application deadlines and interviews in early to mid-October for later internship cycles. Since the deadline for this specific role is not specified, applying early and checking the official careers page is the safest approach.

A process can take several weeks from application to decision. Delays may occur when teams coordinate interview schedules, determine project capacity, or compare candidates across multiple locations.

Screening Methods

Applicant tracking systems may search for terms such as Java, Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, React, APIs, Git, SQL, unit testing, cloud computing, agile, and data structures. Use these terms only when they accurately describe your experience.

Place technical skills near the top of the resume and connect each major project to measurable outcomes. “Built a React application” is weaker than “Built a React and Node application with authenticated API routes, automated tests, and a PostgreSQL data layer.”

Interview Preparation

Example Interview Questions

• Describe a software project you built and the most difficult technical decision you made.
• How would you design and test an API that accepts sensitive reporting data?
• Tell us about a time code-review feedback changed your implementation.
• How would you debug a feature that works locally but fails in a test environment?

How to Answer

Use a concise structure: explain the situation, define your responsibility, describe the technical actions you took, and finish with the result. The STAR method works well for behavioral questions, but technical answers should also include tradeoffs, testing decisions, and what you would improve next time.

When discussing a project, be specific about your contribution. Explain the architecture, the hardest bug, how you validated the result, and how the design would change at greater scale. If you do not know an answer, state your assumptions and reason through the problem rather than guessing confidently.

What Recruiters Evaluate

Recruiters and engineers look for foundational technical ability, learning capacity, communication, ownership, and evidence that the candidate can work effectively on a team. They also evaluate whether the applicant understands that enterprise software requires reliability, security, maintainability, and careful handling of customer data.

How to Get Selected

Practical Tips

• Tailor the resume to cloud software, testing, APIs, and collaborative development.
• Prepare a two-minute explanation of your strongest technical project.
• Practice coding problems involving arrays, strings, hash maps, trees, and API logic.
• Review Git workflows, unit testing, HTTP status codes, and database fundamentals.
• Prepare questions about mentorship, team placement, release practices, and intern ownership.
• Show that you can work remotely through clear documentation and proactive updates.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

• Listing technologies without explaining how they were used.
• Describing group projects without separating your individual contribution.
• Ignoring testing, accessibility, error handling, or security.
• Giving vague answers about debugging or conflict.
• Submitting a resume with unexplained gaps, broken links, or inconsistent formatting.
• Waiting until the deadline when the position may close early.

How To Stand Out

Build a project that demonstrates trustworthy software rather than visual polish alone. For example, create a small reporting dashboard with role-based access, input validation, audit logs, automated tests, and clear documentation. That project would give you concrete material for discussing the same concerns that matter in enterprise reporting software.

Networking can help when it is specific. Contact Workiva engineers, university recruiters, or alumni with a brief message about a relevant project and one thoughtful question. Do not ask for a referral immediately; first demonstrate that you understand the company’s products and the work of the team.

Final Thoughts

The Workiva Software Engineering Intern role is a strong fit for students who want exposure to production-quality enterprise SaaS and meaningful engineering constraints. Candidates who combine solid programming fundamentals with careful testing, concise communication, and curiosity about finance, risk, audit, and sustainability will present a credible case for selection.

Before applying, verify that the remote United States posting remains active, confirm the internship dates and eligibility rules, and tailor your resume to the exact job description. A focused application supported by one well-explained project can be more powerful than a broad list of technologies.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is The Salary?

Available listings indicate approximately $40 per hour for the Workiva Software Engineering Intern role, though the official offer should be treated as definitive. Total earnings depend on the internship’s approved dates and weekly hours.

How Competitive Is Hiring?

The role is likely competitive because it offers paid experience at a public enterprise SaaS company and may be remote across the United States. Applicants improve their odds by applying early, demonstrating completed projects, and preparing for both coding and behavioral interviews.

What Skills Matter Most?

Programming fundamentals, debugging, testing, Git, APIs, and data structures are central. Communication, coachability, ownership, and the ability to think carefully about data quality and reliability can distinguish a strong candidate from someone who only lists popular frameworks.