The Growth of the Internship

This research project is aimed towards recognizing and elaborating on the growing value of internship programs for both students and employers. Throughout the beginning of the research, there is a breakdown of how apprenticeships were the first mainstream forms of job training followed by a shift into the internship structure instead. In the background, there is also a deeper understanding of the legal contributions that developed the presence of internships and the economic circumstances that have led to more temporary employment. At the higher education level, there is a significant focus on setting students up for success and putting them in the best possible positions after graduation. Therefore, many universities partner with companies to be able to offer students the best opportunities to help bridge the gap between the classroom and the workforce. On the other hand, companies have found difficulty as of late, especially after the pandemic, establishing a competent workforce and keeping those employees long-term. Turnover has become a significant problem for companies, and they are making every effort they possibly can present as much value as possible to prospective and current employees. In turn, internship programs have burst onto the scene to give students valuable experience and insight into their future careers, along with giving companies a chance to see how the student does in the role and whether they could be successful in it long-term. To get a feel for how students and employers perceive these internships and gauge their experience with these programs, I put together four separate surveys to send out to the four main groups I am targeting. These student surveys were for students at the Mike Cottrell College of Business students on the Dahlonega campus and the employer surveys were sent out to employers that are affiliated with UNG, along with some other employers in the Atlanta metro area that are looking to hire business students. The two student surveys are differentiated between those that have had an internship and those that have not. The two internship surveys are differentiated between those that offer internship programs and those that do not. These four surveys helped me gain a better understanding of how business students at UNG view internships and their experiences with them, along with helping me learn more about how employers feel about internships and compare companies that do offer them versus those who do not. The project has valuable implications for future students, corporate sponsors of UNG, and the university as a whole as we look to connect students with more future employment opportunities.