Job Description

About VAZA
We're the world's first monetized opinion platform - turning viral debates into interactive, competitive experiences where users back their takes with real money and earn if they're right. We've just developed VAZA v1 and are preparing for our public rollout.

Founded by local entrepreneurs from Brampton and Mississauga, VAZA is backed by early angel investment and partnered with Gowling WLG for legal, with a fast-growing team of content, marketing, and design talent.

Role Overview
As a Software Engineering Intern, you'll work directly with the founding team and our developers to strengthen, scale, and maintain the VAZA platform as we head into launch and post-launch growth.

Core Technical Requirements:

1. Next.js/React Expertise

- Server/client components understanding

- App router patterns

- React hooks and state management

- Performance optimization (lazy loading, code splitting)

2. Database & Backend

- PostgreSQL/Supabase proficiency

- Database migrations and schema design

- Real-time subscriptions understanding

- Row-level security (RLS) concepts

3. TypeScript

- Strong typing practices

- Interface/type definitions

- Error handling patterns

4. Infrastructure & DevOps

- Basic AWS/cloud knowledge

- Environment variable management

- CI/CD pipeline understanding

- Monitoring and logging basics

Infrastructure Requirements:

1. Vercel Deployment

- Understanding of serverless/edge functions

- Environment variable management in Vercel dashboard

- Build optimization (analyzing build times, bundle sizes)

- Preview deployments and branch protection

- Domain/DNS configuration

- Vercel Analytics and Web Vitals monitoring

- Edge Config for feature flags

- Understanding of Vercel's automatic scaling

2. Railway Deployment

- PostgreSQL database hosting and backups

- Service health monitoring

- Database connection pooling

- Understanding Railway's pricing/resource limits

- Environment synchronization between services

- Database migration strategies in production

3. CI/CD Pipeline Setup (Priority Skills)

- GitHub Actions workflow creation

- Automated testing setup:

- Unit tests (Jest/React Testing Library)

- Integration tests

- E2E tests (Playwright/Cypress)

- Pre-deployment checks:

- TypeScript compilation

- ESLint/Prettier enforcement

- Build success verification

- Database migration automation

- Automated preview deployments

- Production deployment gates

4. Monitoring & Observability

- Error tracking setup (Sentry/LogRocket)

- Performance monitoring (Vercel Analytics)

- Database query performance tracking

- Uptime monitoring (UptimeRobot/Pingdom)

- Log aggregation and analysis

- Setting up alerts for:

- High error rates

- Slow API responses

- Database connection issues

- Payment webhook failures

5. Security & Best Practices

- Secret rotation strategies

- API rate limiting implementation

- CORS configuration

- Security headers setup

- Database backup automation

- Incident response planning

Specific Tasks They Should Handle:

- Set up staging environment mirroring production

- Implement automated database backups

- Create deployment rollback procedures

- Monitor and optimize Vercel/Railway costs

- Set up development environment documentation

- Create runbooks for common issues

Specific to VAZA:

1. Payment Integration

- Stripe API experience

- Webhook handling

- Payment flow debugging

2. Real-time Features

- WebSocket understanding

- Supabase Realtime

- Connection state management

3. Performance & Scaling

- Database indexing

- Query optimization

- Caching strategies

- CDN usage

Good Signs:

- Has dealt with production issues before

- Understands monitoring/alerting

- Asks about error tracking setup

- Shows interest in existing patterns/conventions

- Experience with similar tech stack

DO NOT APPLY IF:

- No experience with production apps

- Can't explain database transactions

- Unfamiliar with async/await patterns

- No debugging skills

- Never worked with serverless deployments

- Doesn't understand environment variable security

- No experience with production debugging

- Can't explain CI/CD benefits

- Unfamiliar with git branching strategies

Your chance to have an influence and major role in a future global/viral application. Startup Environment with rapid expected growth!

You Are:

Enrolled or recently graduated in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related program (Waterloo, UofT, McGill, etc.).
Comfortable with full-stack web development (Node.js / Python, React, databases, APIs).
Interested in high-scale apps, fintech, or gamified platforms.
A self-starter who enjoys working in fast-paced startup environments.

What You'll Gain

Hands-on experience with a live fintech/social platform.
Direct mentorship from the founding team.
A front-row seat to a high-growth startup launch.
Portfolio-ready contributions that go into production.
Intern position to start with bonuses offered as we raise funds/generate revenue
Full time salary considerations as we scale
Looking to reward whoever comes on board at this stage

Job Types: Part-time, Internship / Co-op
Contract length: 3 months

Pay: Up to $1,000.00 per year

Expected hours: 15 - 20 per week

Benefits:

Flexible schedule On-site parking Work from home
Application question(s):

Are you Native or professionally fluent in English? Are you enrolled in or have completed a degree in Computer Science/Software Engineering at a school like Wateroo, UofT etc.? If so which one? Please review all Job requirements/Skill requirements. Is this something you will be a fit for?
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Toronto, ON (M5H)