Interns’ stories: Growing in an upbeat international environment

You’re an early-career professional, and you dream for your job to truly matter? Like you, Atif, Elise, and Sara wanted to make a real impact through their work. When joining the Criteo playground, they finally became part of something bigger: a connected global community of experts and innovators ready to shape the future of commerce together. In Toronto, Paris, and Ann Arbor, our beloved interns grew part of the community, leading their projects with curiosity, drive, and purpose. Here’s how their experience changed their perspective on company culture and how to find purpose in your daily work. Their story is one of inclusion, collaboration, and belonging, or, in other words, what our Criteo Campus is all about!  

The real power of company culture 

Is being seen and recognized by peers possible when you’re getting started professionally? For interns like Atif Khan, a Computer Science Student at the University of Toronto, the answer would be “yes”. “At Criteo, I wasn’t just an intern — I was given ownership and trust from day one.” Looking back on his journey now, Atif acknowledges how collaborating with passionate peers and feeling their trust daily allowed him to gain confidence and ramp up quickly. Joining the Criteo playground was certainly a turning point for Atif, especially in his understanding of company culture. As he grew part of this one global connected tech community, united by shared stories and purpose, Atif realized the true power of company culture when it comes to fueling both personal growth and collective success.  

And let’s not forget about the purpose of the work itself. For Atif, Criteo was where classroom theory finally met real-world innovation. After joining the Spend Pipeline team, he contributed to designing and building Ledger Lab - an internal platform used across one of Criteo’s core financial systems. Throughout his internship, Atif helped power real financial processes used by various teams across the organization. “Building something that others in the company will use really gave me a sense of purpose and utility.”  

When freedom to explore equals power to create  

Elise Baturone first interned in Criteo Paris with the Observability team, and if there is one key takeaway she’ll keep with her, it’s the freedom to innovate, test, and iterate. There, she was encouraged to express and test new ideas. “My first internship was exploratory. The team gave me the freedom to test new ideas and, thanks to that, I was able to build something meaningful.” Elise also emphasizes how feeling supported and included from day one has helped her perform well and thrive in her job. “I have a disability, and during my first internship, I was using a wheelchair. People here were kind and respectful. I never had to explain myself — I just felt genuinely supported.”  

Elise then joined the Platform Experience team, where she developed an automated Developer Insights Report to improve engineers’ workflow on a global scale. “I designed a data pipeline that connects to Pandora, our internal tool for engineers. It’s something that will keep growing.” Now returning full-time as an engineer, she will continue to grow in a place where your boldest, craziest ideas are always something we want to hear about.   

Leaving your mark 

Sara Saaidi is a Computer Science student at the University of Michigan, and her journey in tech started accidentally through an elective class she took. “We had to code in R for a statistics class, and I remember thinking, I’ve never coded before; How will I do this? But I ended up loving it — not even the stats part, the coding part!”  

As a Software Engineering Intern stationed in Ann Arbor, Sara worked on improving bid transparency and decision-making processes for advertisers, ensuring users have full insight into all aspects of their bids during the campaign creation flow. “It’s really rewarding to know that what I built will actually be used by clients and actually has an impact.” Like many other interns, Sara cares to make an impact through her work and give back. Feeling particularly inspired by the culture of open feedback and knowledge sharing around here, she even took it upon herself to develop a Confluence guide to help future interns succeed. “If I could tell new interns one thing, it’s this: talk to people. Ask questions. Everyone wants you to learn and grow.” Making real connections is more than a brand statement here; it’s a shared mindset. “From the first week, people invited interns to lunch, answered questions, no matter how big or small, and shared their stories. You really feel like part of the team.”  

Now, it’s your turn to build, learn, and belong! 

From Toronto to Paris to Ann Arbor, these stories demonstrate what happens when you allow people the freedom to explore their ideas and learn by doing. At Criteo, interns don’t just watch innovation happen; they make it happen. Every line of code, every idea shared, every connection made helps shape, not only their journey, but the entire future of commerce.  

Step into your future!  

Explore our Early Career opportunities and start shaping your own path.