The Four Hour
Internship
Find a job you love. Find the talent you need.
Program Leaders
Meet the Conduit leaders trying to break the old hiring paradigm and creating a new approach.
Program Overview
The modern tech job market is a minefield for both job-seekers and companies looking to employ them. The Four Hour Internship is a new program that brings together job-seekers starting their tech careers with companies looking to hire them. By getting people to work on real problems together, we can accelerate the matching of candidates with the jobs that fit them. Here’s how it works.
For Job-Seekers
You apply to be a part of a Four Hour Internship event in the specific field you’re interested in. For example, if you’re looking for a front-end developer position, that’s what you apply for. You don’t need a resume, a certificate or any other documentation. We don’t care about the sheepskin, and your employer doesn’t either. All anyone cares about is whether you can do the job. After applying, we arrange a short (15min) phone screen to check on the basic skills needed to do the job. If you pass the screen then you’re in the event, ready to meet prospective employers. Simple as that.
For Employers
If you’re hiring for a junior tech position, you know how difficult it can be. You get flooded with applications, and you’re left sifting through hundreds or even thousands of resumes. Then you have to pick some of them out, screen and interview them, then hire. It’s an incredible time-sink. The Four Hour Internship lets you sidestep a lot of that process by providing you with an opportunity to actually work with qualified pre-screened applicants on real problems in real situations. No more contrived interview situations or artificial barriers. Just people working together, just like you would at work.
Don’t miss out
Here’s more of what to expect
The Four Hour Internship is an event lasting, well, four hours. The event is split up into 2 two-hour sessions. In each session, a hiring manager from a company is paired with a group of four pre-screen job-seeker participants. You’re given a well-defined project to work on during that two-hour period. We’ve carefully put together a set of fun, engaging projects that really simulate how work gets done in a real company.
During the session, the team works together on the project with a clear set of achievable and reach goals. Of course, each team can take it in whichever direction it thinks is best. Remember, this isn’t an interview. It’s a chance to do real work alongside some great new teammates and a prospective hiring manager!
After the two-hour session, we’ll re-pair the teams so that employers get to work with four new people, and each applicant gets to meet a new prospective employer. At the end of it all, we’ll do a little wrap-up, award a few prizes, and that’s it. You’ve finished your first Four Hour Internship!
Tips to get the most out of this program.
For Job-Seekers
Hone your skills! That doesn’t mean “studying” for an interview, it means building things.
Get familiar with the tools of your trading. For example, if you’re looking for a front-end dev position, get comfortable using Github and the Chrome debug console.
Get comfortable working in a small group. Work in pairs with a friend on a small project.
For Employers
Define clearly the job requirements. This doesn’t mean adding a lot of arbitrary achievement filters, it means describing clearly what the job actually entails day-to-day. We can help you with this.
Identify hiring managers and other experienced personnel that would be willing to participate in the event. The person should have extensive experience interviewing, hiring and mentoring junior people.