Technical Writing Intern

Job Description:

Welcome!

Spend a summer learning to explain some of the most sophisticated test systems in the world. MTS builds the machines engineers use to prove out cars, aircraft, bridges, and advanced materials — and somebody has to describe how each one works, how to run it, and how to keep it running.

This is a paid summer internship for a student who is still in school and returning to it in the fall. You will join the Technical Communications team, set goals in your first week, and review your progress at mid-term.

You will do real documentation work. Interns here produce content and findings the team keeps using after the summer ends. This will be on-site in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. The work requires regular hands-on access to test systems in the lab.

Company Description

Smart People. Smart Ideas. Smart Choices.

A thriving environment for learning, innovation and growth.

Why do so many people join MTS Systems Corporation and stay for a career? Because you get to apply your creativity, work with smart people on fascinating projects, and make a positive impact on people's lives.

Transforming what's possible with cars, aircraft, bridges, wind turbines and space-age materials — this is work we dream about as kids. At MTS it is a career for people willing to work hard, think hard, and solve critical problems for customers who lead their industries.

You will have the latest tools and technologies, colleagues who are passionate about their work, and a culture of continuous improvement with many ways to advance your career. Because we are a global company, your work may include international travel.

What You Will Work On

• Projects are scoped each summer to what the team needs, and usually draw on some combination of:
  • Product documentation — writing and revising content for MTS test systems and components: how a system works, how to operate it safely, and how to maintain it.
  • AI-assisted drafting, done properly — we use AI writing assistants daily. You will learn how we draft with them, and more importantly how to catch what the tool got wrong before it reaches a customer.
  • Reviewing published content — checking existing documentation against how a product actually behaves now, and reporting clearly on what no longer matches.
  • The systems themselves — test frames and actuation, sensors, controllers, and the software that ties them together. You will see them running.

What You Will Do

• Learn how an MTS test system works by studying existing documentation, asking engineers questions, and operating systems once you are trained.
• Draft and revise documentation with review from the team, and expect your drafts to come back marked up.
• Verify procedures against the actual software or hardware rather than taking a specification's word for it.
• Write for the people who use these systems — operators, lab managers, test designers, and maintenance technicians.
• Capture and edit screenshots and graphics for the content you write.
• Set goals with your manager in week one, track them, and present what you accomplished at the end of the summer.

Who Thrives in This Role

• You are curious about how things work. You want to know why a fixture is designed that way and what happens when an operator changes a parameter. You are not satisfied paraphrasing a specification you do not understand.
• You write clearly and you take editing well. Your drafts will get marked up. That is how this craft is learned.
• You like explaining things to people who have a job to do. An operator, a lab manager, a test designer, and a maintenance technician each need something different from the same system, and that interests you.
• You are comfortable around equipment. You are willing to put on safety glasses, get close to a running system, and ask questions until the answer makes sense.
• You are considering technical communication as a career. You do not have to be certain. This internship is most valuable to someone who wants to find out whether explaining engineering is the work they want to do.

Minimum Qualifications

• Enrollment. Currently enrolled in a bachelor's program with at least two years of coursework completed, and returning to school after the internship. Mechanical engineering, engineering technology, materials science, or a related engineering discipline; or technical communication, English, or journalism with demonstrated mechanical aptitude.
• Availability. Able to work on-site in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, full time for the summer term.
• Writing. A writing sample is required — coursework, a lab report, a capstone document, or documentation you wrote for a project team.
• Self-Starter. Able to take ownership of a task and make progress with moderate supervision.

Preferred Qualifications

• Coursework or hands-on work in dynamics, mechanics, materials science, hydraulics, pneumatics, controls, instrumentation, or measurement.
• Reading mechanical drawings, assembly drawings, parts lists, and hydraulic or electrical schematics.
• Hands-on work with lab equipment, test fixtures, instrumentation, or a machine shop; robotics, rocketry, and capstone build teams all count.
• Using AI assistants to draft, summarize, or proof technical content — including a realistic sense of where they get things wrong.
• Any experience writing for readers who had to act on what you wrote: lab reports, procedures, assembly instructions, tutorials.

Tools

• Comfortable with, or ready to pick up quickly:
  • AI writing assistants such as Claude or Microsoft Copilot, Microsoft Word and Excel, Microsoft Teams, and a screen capture tool such as Snagit.
• We will train you on:
  • MadCap Flare and the other authoring tools the team uses.'
  • You are not expected to arrive knowing our toolchain. You are expected to arrive able to learn it.

Compensation Information:

$20 - $28 per hour, commensurate with experience and qualifications.

ITW is an equal opportunity employer. We value our colleagues’ unique perspectives, experiences and ideas and create workplaces where everyone can develop their careers and perform to their full potential. 

As an equal employment opportunity employer, ITW is committed to equal employment opportunity and fair treatment for employees, beginning with the hiring process and continuing through all aspects of the employment relationship. 

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected Veteran status or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.