Industry internships: feedback from participating faculty and industry executives

Abstract

This study investigates the experiences of both faculty and hosting property executives with internship programs offered through the Council for Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education. Surveys were sent, via myriad methods, to participants asking for a summary of their experiences and suggestions for improvement. Also of interest was the feedback from hosts; therefore, surveys were also sent to all hosting company representatives for similar feedback. It was discovered that internships are of growing value to faculty and hospitality organizations and the continued development of experiences must be a priority. An interesting suggestion made by hosting executives was the hope that they could arrange internships with educational institutions, wherein they could also return to the academic environment to rekindle enthusiasm, obtain new skills, and update their knowledge on issues facing the industry they represent.

The Industry Experience Gap: Hospitality Faculty Perceptions of the Importance of Faculty Industry Experience

“…Tacit knowledge is particularly relevant to hospitality faculty, who are expected to possess some practical industry experience in order to effectively teach their subject matter as well as conduct research. Hospitality instructors with significant industry experience reported that practical knowledge has proven invaluable in both the classroom (Chandler & Faiola, 2009) and research projects (Harris & Zhao, 2004). For example, faculty indicated that related industry experience was an important resource when they were developing and teaching their courses (Chandler & Faiola, 2009).…”

“…For example, faculty indicated that related industry experience was an important resource when they were developing and teaching their courses (Chandler & Faiola, 2009). Even those faculty participating in hospitality industry internship programs reported increased excitement and appreciation for innovative research opportunities (Harris & Zhao, 2004). In addition, studies have shown high correlations between levels of tacit knowledge and research productivity (Wagner & Sternberg, 1985).…”

Food for Thought: Investigating food and beverage curricular in Australian hospitality degree programs

“…Notwithstanding these qualifications, in relation to the outsource model, it is understood that there is a high likelihood that an internship (a form of outsourcing), will embrace some F&B experience (Harris and Zhao, 2004). For this reason the internship has been included in analysis, but as a separate category -outsource (internship).…”

Students Go a “Waltzing Matilda”—A Regional Tourism Knowledge Exchange Through Innovative Internships

“…Internships are a common feature in tourism and hospitality programs, and research has tracked the attitudes of students (e.g., Busby, 2005;Cho, 2006;Ju, Emenheiser, Clayton, Sue, & Reynolds, 1998;Lam & Ching, 2007;Walo, 2001;Waryszak, 1997), industry (Harris & Zhao, 2004;Lee, Lu, Jiao, & Yeh, 2006), and multiple stakeholders (Beggs, Ross, & Goodwin, 2008;Collins, 2002;Moscardo & Pearce, 2007;Zopiatis, 2007).…”