Cisco's summer internship program generally runs for ten to twelve weeks between May and August and is aimed at current college students, including a FLEX Emerging Leaders track designed for students entering their junior year. Interns are placed across technical and business functions. Technical internships are aimed at students pursuing degrees in computer science, engineering, or related IT fields and typically involve production engineering or development work. Business and marketing internships are geared toward students interested in management, finance, human resources, or digital marketing, giving non-technical students entry points into the company as well.

Through these placements, interns gain hands-on experience with real engineering or business projects, exposure to how a large networking and technology company develops and supports its products, and professional skill-building in their chosen discipline. The program's structure, pairing a defined project scope with training modules, is intended to give students practical experience alongside a clearer view of career paths within the company.