Founding Engineer Intern
SnapMatePhoto is a photography marketplace connecting customers with vetted local photographers. In 6 months we've onboarded 100+ photographers, signed up 600+ customers, and processed 500+ booking requests, all on a small team. We're looking for an engineering intern who wants their code in front of real, paying users on day one.
This isn't a curriculum-based internship. There are no LeetCode-style projects, no rotation programs, no intern manager. You'll be one of three people writing production code that real customers and photographers touch every day.
What this role is really about
Our marketplace ships product updates every week. Customers book life-moment photo sessions through our platform, payments flow through Stripe Connect escrow, and every release is the difference between a smooth booking and a frustrated user. You'll work directly alongside our lead developer and report to the founder.
We need someone who can read existing code, ship a fix or feature, and own it from spec to deploy.
What you'll actually do
- Build new features across the booking, photographer, and admin sides of the marketplace
- Ship fixes for real customer-reported issues
- Improve performance and reliability of core flows: search, booking, payments
- Touch the Stripe payments stack (escrow, payouts, refunds)
- Collaborate on architecture decisions with our lead dev
- Help us decide what to refactor, what to leave alone, and when to do which
Priorities shift quarterly with the business. You'll always know what you're working on and why.
Our stack
- Backend: PHP (FastAdmin / ThinkPHP)
- Frontend: jQuery, Bootstrap, vanilla JS
- Database: MySQL
- Infra: AWS (EC2, S3), Redis
- Payments: Stripe Connect
- Other: Twilio, Meta Ads API, Google Ads API, WebSockets
A note on the stack: this isn't the trendy JavaScript stack you'll see in most startup JDs. It's pragmatic, production-tested, and lets a small team move fast and serve real users today. If you're allergic to PHP, this isn't your role. If you care more about shipping things people use than which framework is on your resume, keep reading.
What we're looking for
- Currently enrolled in a CS or related program, or a recent grad
- Comfortable with PHP, or confident you can pick it up in a week
- Solid fundamentals: data structures, SQL, REST APIs, HTTP, Git
- Self-directed. You can read unfamiliar code, ask the right questions, and ship without hand-holding.
- Clear in writing. Most communication is async.
Bonus points if you have
- Any PHP framework experience (Laravel, Symfony, CodeIgniter, ThinkPHP)
- Stripe API or other payments work in your background
- Linux and Bash basics
- Frontend work with jQuery and Bootstrap
You'll thrive here if you
- Want production code in your portfolio, not toy projects
- Ship work you're proud of, then iterate. You know when something is ready for users and when it's not.
- Aren't precious about the stack and care more about user impact
- Take ownership when things break
You won't thrive here if you
- Need detailed specs for every task
- Want to rewrite everything before shipping anything
- Are looking for a Big Tech-style structured internship with mentors and curriculum
The deal
This is a contractor role with a flat stipend. No set hours. We care about what you ship, not when you're online. Most contributors put in time around their school schedule and own a defined slice of work each month.
This isn't market-rate cash, and we're not pretending it is. What this role actually is:
- Real ownership of features used by paying customers from week one
- Direct mentorship from the founder and lead developer, not a rotating intern manager
- A portfolio piece across payments, marketplaces, and two-sided platforms that most students won't have on their resume
- A founder reference who will vouch for you in detail, with specifics, to your next employer
- A clear path to a full-time role with equity if you and the company are ready for it
If those things are worth more to you than a higher hourly rate right now, we should talk.
How to apply
Send the following to snapmate@snapmatephoto.com :
- Resume
- Work samples
- A short paragraph on why do you want to join snapmatephoto.