VIRTUAL: Applying Education

Abstract

Internships and work life relevance are some of today’s most discussed terms in higher education, making its way into new parts of the academic community. There is a long tradition for internship and vocational training in study programs for professional education in health, teaching and engineering . However, there is an increasing claim for internship and more practical orientated education also in disciplinary and multidisciplinary orientated programs. Different disciplinary programs are now offering various forms of internships, in order to ensure work life relevance for their candidates, and to ensure that students receive a satisfactory learning outcome . One of the drivers behind this development is the enhanced focus on transversal skills in society. In addition to knowledge and competence, the labor market need employees that are creative, critical, communicative, and innovative to be prepared for the challenges of the 21st century. Simultaneously, a closer connection to the field of practice creates several challenges, not least in programs without traditions for internships. In this paper, we aim to discuss both challenges and opportunities for internship in higher education in programs without orientation towards one specific profession. How can we assure high educational quality when introducing internship and cooperation with the industry in disciplinary and multidisciplinary programs? What are the challenges for making good outcomes for the students when the learning activities are moved from the classrooms to practical arenas? And how do we aim for the combination of theory and practice? Two actual educational research and development projects from UiT The Arctic University of Norway internship will be presented in the paper.