VIRTUAL INTERNSHIPS · 2026
B2B
Web app
HR tech
Improving interview scheduling experience
Host companies were joining but never booking interviews. Redesigned the scheduling flow - activation jumped from 19% to 26%.
MY ROLE
Product Designer
TIMELINE
Mar - Apr ‘26
RESEARCH
Spot feedback · Interviews
OWNERSHIP
Discover & research
Problem framing
UX & visual design
Handoff
Post release analytics
ABOUT THE PRODUCT
Virtual Internships is a remote internship platform. The entire hiring loop - posting opportunity, browsing candidates, scheduling interviews, tracking candidates, and making the final call - happens within the platform.
Sign up
→
Post
opportunity
→
Browse
candidates
→
Schedule
interview
Activation gate
→
Extend offer
→
Manage
internship
THE USER
Hiring manager at a host company
Founder
Team manager
HR lead
USES
Google Calender / Outlook Calendar
GOAL ON PLATFORM
Get the interview scheduled in under 5 minutes and move on. Scheduling is admin, not work.
BLIND SPOTS
When am I free?
When is the intern free?
THE PROBLEM
19%
new users booked an interview
81%
dropped off or required ops team support
RESEARCH
Research surfaced 4 different friction points in the interview scheduling UI
In-product spot feedback
Funnel drop-off analysis
User interviews
Ops team insights
1
Constant calendar context switching
Employers toggled between Outlook/Google Calendar and VI 3-4 times per attempt to find a free slot. Most gave up mid-flow.
2
Invisible platform conflicts
Already-scheduled VI interviews weren't shown in the slot picker - employers were silently double-booking two interns at the same time.
3
Interns not adding enough availability
A near-empty calendar on the employer side. Interns weren't adding availability - a supply-side problem masquerading as a UX one
4
Rigid 60-minute duration only
Every interview was locked to 60 mins. Most employers wanted a 20-30 min first-round screen - the constraint made it feel like a bigger commitment than it was.
"I just couldn't find a time. After the third tab switch I gave up - I said I'd come back, but I never did."
- Founder at a Host Company, user interview
INTERVIEW SCHEDULING CALENDAR
2
3
1
1
Purple slot
Intern’s preferred availability hours for interview
2
Grey slot
Disabled slots - time in past
3
White slot
Outside candidates’ preference hours
SOLUTION
Four changes to remove the friction employers faced when trying to book an interview.
2
4
3
1
1
User’s calendar visibility - Orange slots
Your existing calendar commitments appear as orange blocks - no tab-switching, no guessing. Your free time is visible right where you're scheduling.
2
Suggested slots
The best windows where you're free and the intern is available are surfaced automatically. No cross-referencing two calendars - just pick and confirm.
3
On-platform interviews - Blue slots
Confirmed and unconfirmed interviews scheduled with candidates on VI are shown distinctively.
4
Flexible interview duration
15, 30, 45, 60, or 90 minutes. A first-round screen doesn't need an hour - pick what fits and the calendar block updates to match.
5
Slot legends redesigned to match Google Calendar and Outlook
The original slot indicators used colour conventions unfamiliar to most users. We realigned them to match the visual language of dominant calendar apps - so employers don't have to learn new behaviour. Busy looks like busy. Available looks like available. No legend needed.
G
Google Calendar
+
O
Outlook
→
VI
VI - now consistent
THEN EVERYTHING BROKE
The employer-side improvements were live. And yet - employers were still hitting dead ends. The slot picker was better, but the calendar was still empty.
EMPTY STATE - AFTER REDESIGN
Intern has not added availability
EMPTY STATE - AFTER REDESIGN
Intern has not added availability
Schedule Interview with Rashi Mishra
1
Choose requirement
2
Schedule interview
Aug 2024
Your timezone:
(UTC-11:00) Coordinated Universal Time-11
Candidate’s preferred hours
Your busy slots
Candidate
GMT+05:30
Interviewer (You)
GMT+02:30
11 AM
8 AM
12 AM
9 AM
1 PM
10 AM
2 PM
11 AM
3 PM
12 PM
4 PM
1 PM
5 PM
2 PM
6 PM
3 PM
Mon
1
Tue
2
Wed
3
Thu
4
Fri
5
9 PM
6 PM
10 PM
7 PM
Busy
7am - 11am
Busy, 8am
Busy, 10:45am
Busy, 9am
Busy
9am - 10:15am
Busy
11:25am - 12:25am
Busy
Busy
7am - 11am
Interview: Rashi Mishra
8am - 9am
Interview: Srujal Vaidya
9am - 10am
Back
THE BLOCKER WE DIDN’T SEE COMING
68.5%
of the interns had added 20+ hours of interview availability throughout the week
A better slot picker couldn't fix a near-empty calendar. Most interns had only added 1-3 days - leaving employers with nothing to book.
New slot design did not support low supply
Slots looked like Google Calendar’s off-hours - everything looked disabled to the employers.
RESPONSE
SUPPLY SIDE - INTERN PLATFORM
Psychological nudges to encourage interns to add more availability
DEMAND SIDE - COMPANY PLATFORM
Redesigned slot UI
1
4
3
2
1
Intern’s preferred slots
A subtle green icon marks the intern's preferred times - visible without being loud. Employers aren't forced into them, just guided toward the right slot.
2
Outside preference - now looks bookable
Non-preferred slots stay clean and open, not disabled. Employers have full control; the design nudges without restricting.
3
Introduced current time marker
A red line cuts past slots at the present moment - no more wondering why certain times can't be selected.
4
Nudge when booking outside preference
Picking a slot outside the intern's preferred hours? A warning appears in the modal before confirming - reducing reschedule risk without blocking the action.
HOW WAS ALL OF THIS SHIPPED
M1
Busy slots + calendar legends
Employer calendar integration
Legends aligned to GCal / Outlook
M2
Flexible interview duration
15 / 30 / 45 / 60 / 90 min
Custom input
M3
Confirmed + unconfirmed interviews
On-platform conflicts visible
Pending shown distinctly
M4
Slot suggestions
Mutual availability surfaced
One-click booking
M5
Slot redesign + supply side fix
Slot states rebuilt from feedback
Empty state redesigned
Intern nudges shipped
IMPACT
19%
Employer activation rate as of Jan 2026
→
26%
Employer activation rate as of May 2026
+7% WoW
growth in total interviews booked
68.5%
Interns with >20h availability per week
→
86.4%
Interns with >20h availability per week
WHAT I’D CARRY FORWARD
01
Sequence demand and supply improvements together, earlier
We fixed the employer UI first, intern availability later. The supply constraint was a ceiling on how much employer-side gains could deliver - both needed to move in parallel.
02
Empty states aren't edge cases — they're first impressions
The redesigned empty state in M5 was one of the highest-leverage changes. Users fill "no data" with the worst interpretation. Explaining the cause and offering a next action changed that completely.
03
Real traffic reveals real mental models
We reversed two design decisions mid-sprint based on live data that usability testing hadn't caught. Iterative shipping taught us things prototypes couldn't.
04
Reducing perceived commitment is as powerful as reducing actual friction
The custom duration feature didn't change how many slots were available. It changed how large the commitment felt - and that psychological shift moved scheduling intent meaningfully.