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Comparative Analysis of Internship Programs from Employer and Student Perspectives

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Conference

2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Portland, Oregon

Publication Date

June 23, 2024

Start Date

June 23, 2024

End Date

July 12, 2024

Conference Session

Cooperative and Experiential Education Division (CEED) Technical Session 3

Tagged Division

Cooperative and Experiential Education Division (CEED)

Tagged Topic

Diversity

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/48478

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Paper Authors

biography

Lufan Wang Florida International University Orcid 16x16 orcid.org/0000-0003-0767-0384

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Lufan Wang is an Assistant Teaching Professor at Florida International University. Her research interest lies in the area of engineering education and advanced data analytics for smart, sustainable, and resilient buildings, infrastructure systems, and cities.

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Abstract

Internships have long been considered an essential experiential learning method in higher engineering education. It can immerse students in real-world practices and bridge the gap between theory and practice. Internship experience is particularly crucial in fields with strong practical emphasis, such as construction. Recognizing the value of student internship experiences, many universities embed internship courses within their curriculum, and even making them a prerequisite for graduation. However, despite the widespread presence of internship programs, there still exists a gap between the requirements and offerings from the industry and the expectations of students. Such gap can affect the efficacy of student learning experience, potentially undermining the objectives internship programs seek to achieve. To comprehensively understand the current state-of-the-art of the internship programs and student internship experience in the construction industry, this research conducted a comparative analysis from both the employer and student perspectives through online surveys. The results compared the internship program details, intern hiring preferences, and internship format across 11 construction companies in different sizes, as well as student job search experience and the resources they leverage. The results also compared the perceived qualities of an ideal employee, as ranked by both the employers and students. These results foster broader discussion among companies to share experiences and best practices of student internship programs, and provide a roadmap for higher education institutions and industry partners to collaboratively design internship programs that are relevant, effective, and aligned with the evolving needs of both the industry and its future professionals.

Wang, L. (2024, June), Comparative Analysis of Internship Programs from Employer and Student Perspectives Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. https://peer.asee.org/48478

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