Recognized for Excellence in Every Campus Forward Award Category
Niantic received a Campus Forward Award for Excellence in Recruitment Strategies, Tech Innovation, Candidate Experience, DE&I, and Internship Programming.
Receiving an award for each category reflects Niantic's unwavering excellence and commitment to providing the best experience for the next generation of talent. Niantic invests in innovative recruitment strategies, cutting-edge technology, thoughtful candidate experiences, inclusive recruitment practices, and standout internship programs. See below for the highlights of their strategies in each one of these categories.
Excellence in Recruitment Strategies
Niantic’s innovative approach and commitment to building representation from non-traditional backgrounds is demonstrated through the Niantic Voyager Bootcamp & Apprenticeship Program. Through the Voyager Program, Niantic sponsors students local to the communities near their offices, who demonstrate a deep commitment to learning and self-development, in a software engineering bootcamp program. Prior to the bootcamp, most participants have never written code. Niantic fully covers the cost of the software engineering bootcamp as well as providing a living stipend to each participant. Following the bootcamp, select individuals are invited to join Niantic in a paid apprenticeship program for 6 months of hands-on learning embedded on engineering teams. Full time opportunities are available after the apprenticeship, and in it’s pilot year, Niantic converted 5 apprentices into full time positions.
Excellence in Tech Innovation
Niantic’s Emerging Talent Recruiting team leverages technology to build an inclusive, fair and equitable recruiting process. Tools like RippleMatch enable Niantic’s outreach efforts to candidates from any campus. Each season, the team reviews and improves each step in the recruitment process, supported by tech tools. They’ve developed comprehensive candidate interview preparation documents integrated into scheduling software, providing clarity on interviews and evaluation criteria. Niantic prioritizes setting candidates up for success, ensuring they can present their best selves. Additionally, Niantic’s Emerging Talent Recruiting team enhanced interviewer training and embedded rubric-based scorecards into their ATS for fair and consistent ratings. The ways that the team embraces technology enhance both candidate experience and hiring outcomes, aligning with Niantic’s mission to build a more inclusive and equitable recruiting process.
Excellence in Candidate Experience
Niantic believes that setting candidates up to show up as their best selves is essential to creating an excellent candidate experience and fostering a sense of belonging among new hires. The Emerging Talent Recruiting team achieves this by providing comprehensive preparation materials before interviews, including tips, agendas, and company insights. After an offer is extended, candidates are given dedicated time with the recruiter or program manager to discuss details and next steps. Once offers are accepted, the team sends monthly updates to the incoming class of interns to increase engagement and excitement. To build connections and create an inclusive environment, the team introduces incoming interns to peers and mentors ahead of start dates. These intentional efforts ensure interns feel welcome, supported and ready to contribute.
Excellence in DE&I
The Niantic Emerging Talent Recruiting team is dedicated to building representation from non-traditional backgrounds at the entry level through strategic initiatives. Niantic partners with diversity-focused organizations, attends representation-focused conferences, and uses technology like RippleMatch to implement a school-agnostic strategy, broadening access to diverse talent. One of Niantic’s key initiatives is the Voyager Bootcamp & Apprenticeship Program, which supports students from local communities near their offices. The program provides fully funded software engineering bootcamp instruction, living stipends, and six-month paid apprenticeships on engineering teams. Many participants start with no coding experience, and select apprentices transition to full-time software engineering roles. Niantic’s investment in the Voyager Program is a great example of the team’s commitment to building representation and creating equitable pathways for early career talent.
Excellence in Internship Programming
Niantic’s internship program provides interns with a meaningful experience that aligns with the company’s values of inspiring movement, exploration, and face-to-face social connection. Interns work on impactful projects contributing to technology that fosters discovery, collaboration, and positive change. Interns are encouraged to playtest Niantic games and explore the world. Additionally, Niantic’s unique approach to hiring interns 1-2 years out from graduation, cultivates a community of peer mentoring, fostering camaraderie and shared learning. With exceptional return offer rates—over 90% acceptance in the past three years—their program exceeds industry benchmarks, reflecting the positive experiences of their interns. Although smaller in size, the program offers personalized support, learning and growth opportunities, and the chance to work in Niantic’s beautiful San Francisco Bay Area offices, including the iconic San Francisco Ferry Building, and Seattle.
