College Student Sends 456 Applications, Gets Accepted Into One Internship

A college student has revealed how he was able to stay focused and motivated during an intense period in which he applied for 456 internships.

Oliver Wu is a junior studying computer science at the University of Michigan. He plays an active role in campus life, where he's involved with the university's Asian American community and plays volleyball.

Over the past four months though, Wu has been focused on another task on top of his studies and extracurricular activities: landing an internship.

College students today are increasingly mindful of their future career prospects. A survey of students due to graduate in 2023 conducted by job website Handshake found around half were planning to apply to more jobs, while one third were looking at a more diverse range of roles, and one fifth were starting their search sooner.

Wu has only just started out as a junior, but he's already thinking about the future. He told Newsweek he is seeking a "career in tech," though remains flexible about where that will take him.

"I would love to use my skills to develop solutions in sustainability and environmental protection," he said. "However, I do recognize that I am currently still a college student so there is a lot to learn and my plans may change once I get more experience in the industry."

That desire to seek experience has seen him embark on an exhaustive search to land an internship with a top company. It's a search that began before he even started at college, when he started noticing openings being posted on online job boards over the summer.

"I started applying in July and soon I hit 200 applications," he said. Wu said he "stopped looking at the number of applications" fairly early into the process, but quickly developed a daily routine.

"Usually, I would open up two or three job boards, see what new jobs were posted, and then apply to all of the jobs if the salary, location, roles etc. met what I was looking for," he said. "I also kept track of which companies I had referrals to and checked on a weekly basis if those companies had opened up their applications."

Wu said prior to starting college on his very best days he was completing "15 to 20 applications a day," but that slowed down once he was in class. "On days where I did not apply as much, I would practice my technical interview skills," he added.

He insists he never set out to apply for 456 internships though. "It just kind of happened after applying day in day out," he said. Wu attributes that to the fact that he started applying earlier and continued until late in the year.

During this period, there were times when he felt "burned out" though. "The hardest part was staying positive and working hard, despite having hundreds of rejections," he said.

In those periods, he always made sure to take time off to recharge. He remained motivated though. "I did not want to feel regret that I could have tried harder, so I made up my mind to pursue this with everything I had," he said. He attributes some of that to his religious faith and the belief that whether he succeeded or failed "God has a plan for me."

That plan saw Wu complete an astonishing 56 interviews, as well as 30 technical assessments, 22 second- and third-round assessments and four final rounds off the back of those initial applications.

As stressful as it might have been, those interviews and assessments have proven invaluable. "I feel much less nervous and familiar with the process. Additionally, I know what to expect, and the areas which I need to improve at," he said.

More importantly, at the end of such an intense period of pressure, Wu had something to celebrate. "I ended up accepting an offer at Ford as an enterprise technology intern," he revealed. Wu said the moment he learned he had landed the internship he "felt like a massive weight had been lifted off my shoulders."

"I was in class at the time and I remember stepping out, going into the hallway and jumping up and down while silently screaming in excitement for around 10 minutes," he said. "I ended up landing two more offers, but ultimately accepted Ford."

Eager to share his news and highlight the work that went into it, Wu posted a video to TikTok under the handle oliesandroid revealing how the 456 applications had ultimately been "worth it" in the end. The video has been watched 2.7 million times.

Reflecting on the experience, Wu has one piece of advice for anyone looking to land an internship. "Network," he said. "A big mistake I made was not networking properly and being scared to network and relying on cold applications instead. If I could do it all over again, I would definitely network more. Take a deep breath, and relax, this is a marathon not a sprint."