2026 Summer Intern - Industrial Design/User Experience - Michigan

Stryker

Stryker

2026 Summer Intern - Industrial Design/User Experience - Michigan

Portage, MI
Internship
Paid
  • Responsibilities

    What You Get Out of the Internship ​​

    The Acute Care Industrial and User Experience Designers are at the forefront of creating products that ensure that the user-centric needs of our customers are applied to our products and user interfaces. We focus on understanding the challenges faced by doctors, nurses and patients, and then ideate and visualize products and user scenarios that solve those problems. We collaborate with Marketing, Engineering, and Portfolio Managers to ensure that every product is aesthetically pleasing, functional, and delivers world class user experiences that improves patient care and meets the needs of our healthcare professionals.

    As an Industrial Design Intern at Stryker, you will support a cross-functional team of designers, engineers, researchers, and marketers focused on creating innovative, human-centered medical offerings. You will contribute to concept development through ideation, CAD, prototyping and design visualization in support of user-centered research activities that help shape the next generation of Stryker products.

    What you will gain

    • Hands-on experience contributing to real medical device product development.
    • Coaching and mentorship from experienced industrial designers and cross-functional teammates.
    • Opportunities to influence early-stage concepts and produce meaningful work.
    • Growth in technical skills, communication, design process knowledge, and professional confidence.

    Who we want ​​

    Curious Problem Solvers

    Individuals who are eager to explore design challenges, understand user needs, and generate thoughtful, well-reasoned concepts.

    Articulate Visual Communicators

    Designers who express ideas clearly through sketches, prototypes, storytelling, and supportive visuals.

    Collaborative Teammates

    People who thrive in cross-functional environments contribute positively to team culture and build strong working relationships.

    Challengers. People who seek out the hard projects and work to find just the right solutions.​

    Teammates. Partners who listen to ideas, share thoughts and work together to move the business forward.​

    Charismatic networkers. Relationship-savvy people who intentionally make connections with both internal partners and external contacts.​

    Strategic thinkers. Interns who propose innovative ideas and consistently exceed their performance objectives.​

    Customer-oriented achievers. Individuals with an unparalleled work ethic and customer-focused attitude who bring value to their partnerships.​

    Game changers. Persistent interns who will stop at nothing to live out Stryker’s mission to make healthcare better.

    WHAT YOU WILL DO

    Design & Concept Development

    • Create early-stage concepts through sketching, 2D visualization, and physical or digital prototyping.
    • Translate user insights into improved ergonomics, usability, aesthetics, and user experience.
    • Contribute to the definition of form, features, and product look/feel aligned to Stryker’s visual brand language.

    User-Centered Design Research‑Centered Design Research

    • Support research activities including trend reviews, ergonomic analysis, and capturing user insights.
    • Assist in preparing materials for user feedback sessions, co‑creation activities, or usability evaluations.

    Collaboration & Communication

    • Work closely with designers, engineers, marketing, and human factors partners to advance project goals.
    • Contribute to design reviews through compelling visual and verbal communication.
    • Support creation of presentations, storyboards, diagrams, and visual assets articulating design intent.

    Modeling & Visualization

    • Produce sketches, mockups, CAD studies, and visual prototypes to support concept development.
    • Assist in rendering and 3D visualization for communicating form, aesthetics, and experience.

    What You Need

    • Currently pursuing a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Industrial Design, Product Design, or a related field.
    • Cumulative 3.0 GPA or above (verified at time of hire)
    • Must be legally authorized to work in the U.S. and not require sponsorship now or in the future.​
    • Strong written and verbal communication skills, with proven ability to collaborate and build relationships
    • Demonstrated leadership, problem-solving, and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities
    • Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint) and eagerness to learn in a dynamic environment.
    • Foundational skills in sketching, model making, CAD, and visual storytelling.
    • Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite; experience with Rhino, SolidWorks, Creo, or similar tools preferred.
    • A portfolio demonstrating creativity, process thinking, and design fundamentals.
    • A positive attitude, empathy for users, and openness to feedback.

    Pay rate will not be below any applicable local minimum wage rates.

    Stryker is a global leader in medical technologies and, together with its customers, is driven to make healthcare better. The company offers innovative products and services in MedSurg, Neurotechnology, Orthopaedics and Spine that help improve patient and healthcare outcomes. Alongside its customers around the world, Stryker impacts more than 150 million patients annually.

  • Industry
    Medical Devices
  • Fun Fact
    We're a 2018 'Best Place to Work for Millennials'
  • About Us

    The future of healthcare starts with you. Customers, patients and employees are at the heart of everything we do at Stryker. As a world-leading medical technology company, we are focused on innovative healthcare solutions not just for today but for tomorrow. The future of healthcare starts with hiring the best talent and providing our employees with flexibility and opportunity to grow their careers in whatever direction their passions take them.