Engineering Co-op
Posted Sep 15, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026
Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
About your past
What draws you to a co-op in manufacturing and packaging rather than another industry?
What they are checking: Whether they have real interest in plant work, which predicts how engaged they will be on the floor.
Tell me about a class or team project where you solved a real problem. What was your part?
What they are checking: Whether they can explain their own contribution clearly and show how they approach problems.
Tell me about a time you had to learn from someone with a lot more hands-on experience than you.
What they are checking: Whether they respect operators and mechanics and learn from them, which earns trust on the floor.
Tell me about feedback you got that changed how you worked.
What they are checking: Whether they welcome the real-time feedback the program offers and actually act on it.
What would you do
Your co-op is 12 weeks. How would you make sure you finish a project that actually helps the plant?
What they are checking: Whether they can scope work realistically and drive it to a result in a short time.
How do you present your findings to someone like a plant manager who has little time?
What they are checking: Whether they can get to the point and lead with the recommendation, which matters with leadership.
You find that a project you were given was based on a wrong assumption. What do you do?
What they are checking: Whether they raise the problem early with their mentor rather than quietly delivering something useless.
About the work
If you were asked to reduce scrap on a production line, where would you start?
What they are checking: Whether they think to gather data, observe the process and find root causes before proposing fixes.
What safety habits would you bring to working on a plant floor for the first time?
What they are checking: Whether they take PPE, lockout and following plant rules seriously from the start.
Which tools are you comfortable with, like CAD, Excel or a programming language?
What they are checking: Whether they have practical skills they can apply to engineering projects right away.
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Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by Sonoco.