When you join Sallie Mae, you become a champion for all students.
We’re on a mission to power confidence as students begin their unique journey. To help them plan their higher education, successfully finish, and prepare for life after school. To help them Start smart. Learn big.
Students need guidance navigating this important time in their life. They need someone who acknowledges that their education path is unique. They need a partner willing to evolve and not only meet but surpass their expectations. We’re changing. Because students need a better way.
We’re looking for people who are excited to drive this transformation. To break barriers and think of new ways to adapt, help, and create better experiences for students—and for each other.
This is where diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and perspectives matter. It’s where you’re empowered to bring your authentic self to work.
Feeling your best allows you to do your best. Our benefits take care of the whole you—from physical and mental to financial and professional. You’ll get opportunities to further your education and career, support for you and your family (including your pets!), paid time off to volunteer for the things that matter to you, and more.
We’re obsessed with impact and making a real difference. For us, that means putting relationships first, asking “why not?” when tackling challenges, and continuously learning new skills.
Come do more than join something, change something. For students, for future generations, for the future of education.
Sallie Mae is proud to help Americans aspiring to create the life they want--whether that means helping them make college happen, or something more. Our colleagues across departments and across the country are united in our passion and our customer-first approach. Whether you want to join a growing company, be part of an agile workforce, or gain new skills--you're in the right place.
Program Overview:
The Sallie Mae Internship program seeks to attract and develop exceptional early talent while adding value to our organization. Our goal is to tie academic learning into a practical business setting while fostering professional and personal growth within a student’s area of focus.
Over the course of the summer, interns will gain exposure to senior leaders, attend meetings, work alongside mentors, and receive valuable performance feedback.
What You'll Contribute:
Would you like to work in an exciting fast-paced start-up place with the backing of a household name company like Sallie Mae to help millions of people meet their educational needs every day? Together, we’re connected by the same drive—to be a champion for all students and help them make smart decisions with confidence. Do more than join something—change something…for students, for future generations, and for the future of education.
Our new venture, Sallie, is looking for people like you who will define the future of education services for students and their families in the US. As the first education solutions company, we’re creating products and experiences that help students when they need it most. We’re connecting students to free money for school, providing tools and resources to plan for college, sharing inside advice on campus life, and so much more. Visit https://www.sallie.com/about to learn more about us.
What You'll Do:
We are looking for a passionate software development engineer (SDE), software development engineer test (SDE-T) or data engineer (DE) who is eager to build impactful customer facing products supporting the mission of the organization. It is a perfect role for a talented SDE/SDE-T/DE to learn and contribute to the complex technology product design and build process. They are responsible for developing rapid prototypes for customers of education services. The SDE/SDE-T/DE will collaborate with the technical product and program managers, solution architects, and partners both inside and outside of the organization to build and/or test technology products. They work with other Sr. SDE/SDE-T/DE and industry experts to invent and simplify system architecture, reduce system complexity, and build scalable solutions to support future growth of the products and services. They are fast learners and self-starters in adopting the latest technology trends and best practices. They are hands-on building the product features and capabilities following the business requirements while utilizing ML and AI tools to expedite the development timeline wherever possible. As an SDE/SDE-T/DE, they will actively participate in the full development lifecycle of the enterprise systems, work on challenging problems at scale directly.
You must be able to thrive and succeed in an entrepreneurial, cross-functional, and fast-moving environment. This role offers an exciting opportunity to work with a diverse set of team members, stakeholders and senior leaders across the company to create and drive towards the strategic vision at Sallie.
The above information is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by employees assigned to this job; it is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees in this role.
What You Have:
Minimum education, skills and experience required.
Currently enrolled in an accredited university pursuing a degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Statistics, Mathematics, or related technical fields
Open to undergraduate and graduate level students with expected graduation dates of Dec 2026 - May 2027
Availability:
This is a 12-week internship and expectations for a 40-hour work week with a start date of 6/8/26.
We follow a 3-day flexible in office policy and open to working out of our Newark, DE OR Sterling, VA office.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
Strong understanding of programming fundamentals with experience in one or more languages (Python, C#, JavaScript, Java, SQL, or similar)
Excellent interpersonal and verbal/written communication skills with individuals at all levels.
Strong follow through and multi-tasking skills, and attention to detail.
Preferred education, skills and experience required.
Experience in design, implementation, and execution in application/data development
Prior software development engineering experience
Experience with cloud computing, ML, AI, security, networking, and data & analytics
Experience in an environment with distributed, multi-tiered systems, algorithms, and databases
The Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) prohibits discrimination by employers, in compensation and employment opportunities, against qualified individuals with disabilities who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the “essential functions” of a job. A function may be essential for any of several reasons, including: the job exists to perform that function, the employee holding the job was hired for his/her expertise in performing the function, or only a limited number of employees are available to perform that function.
Feeling your best helps you do your best:Our benefits take care of the whole you—so you can build your work around your life (not the other way around!).
Competitive base salaries
Bonus incentives
Generous PTO, Floating Holidays and 12 Federal Holidays observed
Support for financial-well-being and retirement 401k with employer match
Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, hospital indemnity, critical illness, pet insurance and more
Employer paid short-term/long-term disability and basic life insurance
Flexible hybrid working arrangements.
Paid parental leave and adoption reimbursement programs
Free access to on-site staffed fitness centers (in Delaware) and gym subsidy (for locations outside Delaware)
Confidential counseling support (EAP), Health Advocacy services and Wellness program with financial incentives
Tuition Reimbursement and Family Scholarship Programs
Career development and training opportunities
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Sallie Mae is proud to be an equal opportunity (EEO) employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, genetic information, gender identity, disability, Veteran status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. Click here to view the U.S. Pay Transparency Policy, here for federal job applicant notices, and here to view the California Employee Privacy Notice.Reasonable accommodations are available for applicants with disabilities in all phases of the application and employment process. To request an accommodation please call (855) 756-2007 and choose option 9. All information you provide will be kept confidential and will be used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodations.
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What We Do
Sallie Mae’s mission is to power confidence as students begin their unique journey. We believe college should be affordable, equitable, and accessible for all students. As the leader in private student lending, we provide financing and expertise to support college access and completion. We offer products and resources to help students and families start smart in planning for higher education, ensuring opportunities to learn and dream big.
