Rocket Innovation Studio: Co-Op Program

Rocket Innovation Studio (RIS) has a co-op program that allows students to receive cutting-edge experience between study terms. In this article, we hear from four students returning for the second time to RIS as co-ops. Their job is to work with their teams to create innovative software solutions for Rocket Companies®.

Here’s what each student had to say.

Working at Rocket Innovation Studio has been a ton of fun and was a very valuable experience. I had the opportunity to develop both my front- and back-end skills while creating enterprise-grade code. My team members helped me improve my code quality and implement best practices. Also, everyone within the company, especially my team, was very friendly and always trying to help.

RIS facilitates learning and promotes tremendous growth. They encourage you to develop your skills and offer many free courses to facilitate it. They even created Hack Week to practice your skills and possibly show off anything interesting you created. Last term, I enrolled in many free courses and used Hack Week to the fullest. I enrolled in communication and networking courses to improve my public speaking and networking skills. For Hack Week, I created a small game and trained a deep neural network to play the game. It was an amazing learning opportunity and they let me present it to the company too!

RIS also provides developers with cutting-edge technology to allow for maximum creativity output. I was given three monitors at the office for organization. We’re also given the best IDEs to assist with coding. We are given many technologies to increase our productivity.

Though RIS has amazing training and technology, they also provide a positive work environment. They have free snacks, an awesome coffee machine and a flavored sparkling water machine. The coffee machine even makes tasty mochas! Additionally, the sparkling water machine provides an electrolyte mix to keep you hydrated.

On top of all that, they recently added a slushie machine and foosball table. These complementary accessories aren’t directly related to work, but they do make your experience at the company much more fun. A fun atmosphere stimulates your brain and creates a positive culture that is directed by their ISMs.

In summary, RIS takes care of their employees and as such, we treat each other with that same kindness. My experience at Rocket Companies has been a lot of fun and I would recommend this company to any upcoming developers!

I first heard about Rocket Companies through my school’s co-op program. Co-ops are a type of internship you take in Canada during your college years. First impressions matter and after doing some initial research on the company I was excited to send an application in. One thing led to another and after the interview process, I was extended an offer at Rocket Innovation Studio.

My first term at the company was an amazing experience that helped me start my career in technology. I was paired up with a mentor, put on a team and given all the resources and support to get trained. Coming into this role I was worried that I wasn't going to be given real work or taken seriously as a co-op but I'm glad to say that wasn’t the case. I was put on a team doing cutting-edge work, worked with engineers pioneering new technologies and was treated exactly like a developer.

The awesome work environment here is, and ultimately was, the reason I came back for another term. The company culture is influenced by ISMs; simple philosophies that highlight what the company values and has a strong influence on how we work. These values set this company apart from other employers and ultimately synergize and promote the healthy work-life balance here. At the end of the day, I'm growing very fast in this role and this experience has been very meaningful. If you're looking to grow your expertise and career especially as a student/associate this is the place to be.

The wonderful experience of working at Rocket Innovation Studio began last year when I first learned about the company through my university's co-op postings. I became acquainted with the company's culture and the ISMs through initial research to prepare for my interview, and later it became the reason I came back for a second term.

As a first-year university student entering the workplace, I was extraordinarily nervous. However, even with my lack of experience, my team welcomed me with open arms. I was treated like any other developer regardless of my skills and when I hit a roadblock, I was given the support I needed to keep moving.

Along with the wonderful people, this co-op has provided me with experience working on production applications built with innovative technology. It’s a great feeling knowing that the work I do every day has an impact and is being used in production applications.

Through hands-on experience I was put in a position to learn what could not be taught in a classroom by exceptionally talented mentors and team members.  Working at RIS solidified my decision of becoming a developer by not only providing me with the skills to work in the field but with a team that always has each other's back.

I first heard about Rocket Companies from following the NBA and noticing that the arena that housed the Cleveland Cavaliers was called Quicken Loans Arena, and later, Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. Afterwards, I learned of Rocket Companies co-op program from a job posting that was listed on the co-op job board at my university. I was interested in the position that was being offered and the company culture that was showcased, so I applied and was accepted, which was the beginning of a great work term.

I was placed on a team full of great people and mentors to work with, all of whom were very willing to help me learn the ropes. From the start, I was treated like a full-time developer and was given control to work on an entirely new feature (using the latest technologies!) for a real-world application.

As a result, I never felt like I was relegated to working on a co-op side project. The feature was a blast to work on, and both my mentors have done an excellent job at passing along skills and tips to me, which is especially important for co-ops like us.

The great work environment here was ultimately the reason I chose to return for a second term. Rocket Companies operates on the ISMs, a set of philosophies that all team members live by here, and it is what leads to the great work environment that I’ve experienced.

This really sets Rocket Companies apart from other companies, which often talk the talk but do not walk the walk with company culture. Overall, Rocket Companies and Rocket Innovation Studio is a great place to be at for those looking to work with great people in a great environment while consistently improving their trade!

The co-op program allows students to gain valuable experience while working at Rocket Innovation Studio. You’ll enjoy working with your team to develop software for Rocket Companies. On top of that, the company has an astonishing work culture and exceptional people to work with.