[Hiring] Software Engineering Internship Program @Wikimedia Foundation

Role Description

The Wikimedia Foundation is looking for graduates, non-graduates, or those seeking a career change who are interested in developing software engineering skills through an immersive “learn on the job” internship program. As an intern, you will be embedded into an engineering team within our Product and Technology departments and assigned a primary project with clear deliverables. Alongside your manager and dedicated mentor, you will learn the inner workings of our open source code that helps to create “a world in which everyone can freely share in the sum of all knowledge”. You will work with software that serves over half a billion page views per day through Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects. The outcome of your work will impact how all people everywhere discover, share, and contribute to free knowledge.

Additionally, you will have the opportunity to learn about various departments at the Foundation and connect with the wider volunteer movement and community.

Qualifications

• Basic experience with at least one back end or front end programming language (e.g PHP, Javascript, Python) OR a mobile app language (Kotlin, Swift), OR a demonstrated interest in cybersecurity and/or privacy.
• Basic experience with databases.
• Basic experience with at least one scripting language.
• For some roles: Basic querying and data manipulation with SQL or other query languages.
• Linux/command-line knowledge.
• Understanding of networking, operating systems, or distributed systems concepts (latency, throughput, error rates).
• Ability to work independently and be resourceful in solving problems.
• Ability to stay accountable to deliverable requirements deadlines.
• Effective and inclusive communication skills with diverse cultural and language communities.
• Willingness and hunger to learn, a positive attitude, empathy, and a sense of curiosity.
• The ability to flourish in a highly transparent and collaborative environment.
• A desire to make meaningful contributions to knowledge equity, free culture, and open access to global education.

Requirements

• Successful candidates must be able to commit to a four month, 40hr/week internship which will fall between late February to late June 2027.
• We will provide laptops and necessary software installed for the duration of the program.
• This role is 100% remote, with potential opportunities to participate in in-person events.

Benefits

• Competitive hourly pay range of US$34.32 to $42.13 per hour.
• Remote-first organization with staff members based in 40+ countries.
• Inclusive and equitable workplace.

Company Description

The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe that everyone has the potential to contribute something to our shared knowledge, and that everyone should be able to access that knowledge freely.

• We host Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects.
• We build software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content.
• We support the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible.
• We advocate for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive.