Internships are a common form of experiential learning. The idea of an internship is to provide students with direct experience in a work setting related to their career interests and academic focus. Internships afford the benefit of supervision and coaching from professionals in the field. These professional opportunities represent an effective experiential education exercise and create authentic applied opportunities for students. Internship experiences represent a venue for students to apply skill sets and what was learned in the classroom to a real world setting.
Real-world work experience is an
expectation
of employers. Internships are an integral part of the learning, exploration and professional growth process for students. The focus of an internship is on learning.