Undergraduate Internship Attachment in Accounting: The Interns Perspective

Abstract

Increasingly, internship has become an essential component of the undergraduate programme. It provides students with a smooth transition from the on-campus environment to the working environment. It is often viewed as a 'win-win' situation for both the intern and the intern's employers. Students are able to learn about the profession and gain practical experience while simultaneously being able to reflect on what they have learned in the classroom. Employers benefit from internships as interns are sources of future employees. This paper examines whether the expected benefits of internship, as perceived by interns before going for their internship, are actually achieved.

Internship for accounting undergraduates: comparative insights from stakeholders

“…Additionally, Hasbullah and Sulaiman (2002) propose that curriculum and facilities should be improved to suit present industry requirements. Muhamad et al (2009) examine the perception of university students before and after internship programmes. The study finds that student expectations prior to beginning internship programmes are not met at the conclusion of the internship programmes, particularly in relation to the expected benefits gained from participating in the internship programmes.…”

“…However, many studies are limited in scope and focus. Typically, the conclusions of studies are based upon feedback from the singular perspective of either the student (Madilaras, 2004;Cord et al, 2010;Thompson, 2011;Martin and Wilkerson, 2006;Maelah et al, 2011;Abu Bakar et al, 2011;Muhamad et al, 2009;Hasbullah and Sulaiman, 2002); the university (Thompson, 2011); or the employer (Pianko, 1996). Tindale et al (2004) examine internships from the perspectives of both the students and the university, but focus on postgraduate accounting programmes while excluding undergraduate programmes.…”

Internship Programs for Undergraduate Health Informatics Students in Saudi Arabia

“…• developing high competencies [6] • improving communication with the organisations in the industry [6,9,10] • gaining opportunities to identify curriculum issues, and thus enabling them to improve their programs [6,11,18,19] • enhancing student recruitment [6,9] • achieving a notable reputation [6].…”

Gauging the Effectiveness of Six-week Internship Duration in Business Education in Pakistan: Implications for Policy and Practice

“…Depending upon the objectives of the internship, the internship programs in the US may vary from 2 to 18 months; whereas in European countries these are from 3 to 12 months (Albashiry, Voogt, & Pieters, 2011). On the other hand, in Malaysia (Muhamad, Yahya, Shahimi & Mahzan, 2009) and most of the African countries (Bukaliya, 2012), the internship program is of 10 week duration. In Pakistan, the duration of a business internship program is six-weeks, which falls within the criteria laid down by HEC Pakistan.…”