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All student internships should have a clear set of objectives and outcomes to evaluate the student and the internship.

 

Evaluation:

       

       One of the final components of the intern’s and the organization’s experience is developing an                          evaluation framework. Here are several factors to consider regarding evaluations:

     

                   Evaluations should be a dialogue, and include areas of growth for both the student and                    the internship program. 

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                   Evaluations can only be as good as the design of the internship program.

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                   Final evaluations should occur at least two weeks before the conclusion of the internship to                              provide time for questions and follow-up

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      This is an important step for both students and employers –it gives them the opportunity to evaluate             their internship experience

 

Students:

•    It is beneficial for students to reflect on their employer and internship program in order to             provide feedback as to whether or not the organization cultivated an environment that                   allowed students to reach their objectives.
•    This information will be useful for the organizations as they work to build and improve                     student internship opportunities.

 

Employers:

•    Employer evaluations on a student intern will offer information as to whether or not the                student has met the organization’s professional expectations.
•    This will benefit the employer in terms of making future hiring decisions and determining the         requirements that the employer has in place for its interns.

 

Student Outcomes:

•    Student outcomes are important to document in order to confirm whether or not the student       met their internship objectives. 

 

•    To a student, a positive outcome could include the immersion into a professional environment       at the organization, which allowed the student to take on various responsibilities and learn             about the workplace.

 

•    Alternatively, a negative outcome may have been that a student was only given menial tasks          throughout the internship; therefore they did not further develop employability skills. 

 

 

Evaluation Methodology: 
 

•    Each internship program will have a different evaluation methodology. Below are several common student evaluation approaches. 

 

Quantitative Measurements:
•   Numerical ratings on surveys
•   Gaining data on student’s abilities in a variety of areas
•   Determining strengths and challenges of students
•   Noting improvements between initial intake and end of internship

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Qualitative Measurements:
•  Self-evaluations from intern on their work
•   Written reporting on whether or not their internship met their goals and expectations
•   Answering questions on how intern felt about their experiences

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Integrated Mixed-Methods:
•    A combination of both qualitative and quantitative measurements
•    This method helps to fill in the gaps in information that one of the methods alone may           not have addressed
•    Provides a holistic approach that will ensure there is a mix of data and opinion

 

 

In this section, we will investigate how to evaluate an internship to determine its success