Lessons from My Internship
What my OJT as an Artificial Intelligence Intern at Crawlers taught me about communicating at work, raising concerns, working with the CEO, and why no developer is an island.
AWS SkillBuilder Co-Lead @ AWS SBG - Spade | Former AI Intern @ Crawlers | 3x TESDA Certified Student Developer | Cloud & AI
For a long time, my setup was just my laptop and my own ideas.
But my recent On-the-Job Training (OJT) as an Artificial Intelligence Intern at Crawlers showed me how software is actually built in a real company.
Going from a student to working in a corporate setup was a big adjustment. If you are a student developer preparing for your first internship or tech role, here are the biggest lessons I learned that you can apply to your own journey.
How Professionals Actually Communicate
In class, you mostly talk to classmates and teachers. At work, every message has a purpose. You need to be clear about what you are doing, what is blocking you, and what you need from others.
The Takeaway: Writing code is only half the job. The other half is being able to explain your work simply. When giving updates, write them so that people who do not read code still understand what is going on.
Focus on clarity and progress.
Speaking Up and Raising Concerns
As an intern, it is easy to stay quiet and just do what you are told. But I learned that raising a concern early is part of doing the job well.
The Takeaway: Do not hide your roadblocks. If something might break, take longer to build, or not work the way people expect, it is always better to say it now than to explain it later. Explain the problem simply, share your proposed options, and speak up without being afraid.
Working Directly with the CEO
I had the chance to work directly with the CEO. Talking directly with the person who sees the bigger picture helped me understand why each feature mattered.
The Takeaway: Always connect your work back to the business. It is not enough that your code simply runs without errors. You need to make sure that what you are building actually helps the company and solves a real problem.
No Man Is an Island
I usually take pride in building projects completely by myself. But this internship proved that "no man is an island," especially in system development.
The Takeaway: Drop the ego. You will not know everything, and there will always be someone more knowledgeable about a specific tool or task. Stay humble, ask for help, and embrace feedback. Working with others catches the things you miss and turns a system that just works into a system that works really well.
The Impact of Funded Development
As a student, I am used to looking for free tiers and workarounds. One of the best parts of this OJT was that the company fully funded the tools and resources we needed for development.
The Takeaway: When a company provides you with the right financial backing and infrastructure, use it to your advantage. Stop looking for shortcuts and start focusing entirely on engineering a good, scalable system the right way.
What I'm Taking With Me
Building your own projects is great. But working inside a supportive company teaches you things you just cannot learn by yourself: how to communicate, how to speak up, how to collaborate, and how to build for someone other than yourself.
Thank you to the team at Crawlers for the trust, the support, and the chance to grow!
