Electrical Engineering Intern (Summer 2027)

Second Order Effects; El Segundo (CA); Hybrid; USD 42,240 - 70,400; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Paid time off

401(k) matching

Housing stipend

EV charging

Catered lunches

Job summary

Second Order Effects is seeking an Electrical Engineering Intern to design, develop, and test solutions for customer-facing projects. You will take ownership of key components, prototype rapidly, and contribute from ideation to production, including PCB layout, firmware debugging, and embedded integration.

You’ll gain hands-on experience across analog and digital circuits, embedded C, HDL, and lab validation while working in a small team that values initiative, clear communication, and practical

Qualifications

• Pursuing a relevant degree with strong fundamentals.
• Demonstrated passion for electrical engineering and problem solving.
• Willingness to learn and contribute in a small team.

Responsibilities

• Ownership: contribute to design of electrical and embedded systems for customers.
• Hardware Development: perform schematic capture, PCB layout, component selection, prototyping.
• Test & Validation: use lab equipment to bring-up boards and debug systems.
• Embedded Systems: write and debug embedded C code or HDL.

Skills

Electrical engineering fundamentals

Embedded systems

PCB design

Python

C/C++

Verilog/VHDL

Testing & debugging

Lab equipment usage

Education

Current enrollment in Electrical Engineering or related field

First or second year circuits classes

Tools

Altium Designer

KiCad

Cadence

EAGLE

LTspice

PSpice

Job description

Company Overview

Second Order Effects started in 2016 as a services firm, taking on other companies’ hardest engineering problems from first principles. We grew into a solutions firm that designs and ships complete custom electronics and systems, including power electronics, RF, and control systems. We’ve completed over 250 projects for more than 100 clients. Our designs control rocket engines, manage satellite communications, instrument fusion reactors, and are enjoyed by consumers around the world.

Company Overview

Second Order Effects started in 2016 as a services firm, taking on other companies’ hardest engineering problems from first principles. We grew into a solutions firm that designs and ships complete custom electronics and systems, including power electronics, RF, and control systems. We’ve completed over 250 projects for more than 100 clients. Our designs control rocket engines, manage satellite communications, instrument fusion reactors, and are enjoyed by consumers around the world.

We approach problems from first principles. We break challenges down to their most fundamental components, which is how we find solutions that hold up across industries, use cases, and engineering functions. We focus on solving the right problems and building the teams to take them on. Because we believe that training and empowering others yields a greater impact than focusing on developing any specific technology, we expect every single member of our team to participate in building up those around them.

In the past year, we’ve started taking our own concepts and spinning them out into separate companies that we believe will meet the emerging needs of our clients and the industry at large. The work is concentrating in frontier technology, including space, fusion and fission energy, and advanced vehicles. We currently have two spinout companies in stealth that we’re working on.

Information about our mission, vision, and values can be found here.

Examples of the projects we have worked on can be found here.

Role Overview

As an Electrical Engineering Intern, you will play a hands-on role in designing, developing, and testing solutions for customer-facing projects. In this role, you will take technical ownership over key components, rapidly prototype ideas, and participate in the hardware development process from ideation to production. Whether it’s laying out a custom PCB, debugging firmware on a prototype board, or integrating embedded systems, you’ll have the opportunity to apply what you know, and quickly level up on what you don’t. This internship is designed to accelerate your technical growth, giving you the chance to make measurable contributions while building a strong foundation in professional engineering practices.

What You Will Do

• Ownership: Contribute to the design of electrical and embedded systems for customers across various industries
• Hardware Development: Perform schematic capture, PCB layout, component selection, and electrical prototyping
• Test & Validation: Utilize standard lab equipment (oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, multimeters, etc.) to perform board bring-up, troubleshooting, and system-level debugging
• Embedded Systems: Write and debug embedded C code or HDL (e.g., Verilog/VHDL)

What You Will Need

• Current enrollment in college (Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, Math, or related field)
• First or second year circuits classes and knowledge of electrical engineering fundamentals
• Familiarity with at least one programming language (e.g., Python, C, C++, R, etc.) or hardware description language (e.g., Verilog, VHDL)
• Demonstrated passion and curiosity for electrical engineering
• Strong problem-solving skills and initiative to overcome technical challenges
• Strong written and verbal technical communication skills; ability to explain design decisions and component selections
• Experience with one or more of the following: analog circuits, mixed-signal designs, embedded programming, RF, power electronics, or optical systems development

What Would Be Useful

• Experience in team-based design and build projects (e.g., Formula SAE, Solar Car, CubeSat, Rover Challenge, etc.)
• Experience with analog small-signal circuit design (filters, op-amp circuits, signal conditioning) and/or power electronics designs: regulators, load drivers, supply filters, protection circuitry
• Experience in any common ECAD tool, such as Altium Designer, KiCad, Cadence, PADS, EAGLE, etc.
• Experience with circuit simulation using LTspice, Pspice, or similar programs

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary: $70,400 annual salary, prorated for length of internship
• Flexible work hours and work from home policy
• 100% employer-paid health insurance (Medical, Dental, Vision) for employees + 50% dependent coverage
• Accrued paid time off policy, accrued sick days policy, and paid company holidays
• 401(k) retirement account and employer matching (Safe Harbor 4%)
• Housing stipend bonus
• Electric Vehicle (EV) charging ports
• Catered lunches, snacks, and accessible kitchen

If you don’t meet 100% of the preferred skills and experience, we encourage you to still apply!

Second Order Effects is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SOE is governed on the basis of excellence and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status.