An “internship” is defined by the National Society for Experiential Education (NSEE) as:
“a carefully monitored work or volunteer experience in which an individual has intentional learning goals and reflects actively on what he or she is learning throughout the experience”
WICEN(World Internships & Cultural Exchange Networks), would expand on that to say, an internship is the transition from study to work and is a necessary component in order to develop a student’s skills, making them more advanced and diligent when they finally have the opportunity to be a part of the working world.
The Difference between an Internship and a Job
An Internship program is quite different to a job; all of our international interns are looking for “hands on” work experience in the real world aligned to their academic studies. The internship program is structured on the intern’s objectives and what they’d like to achieve out of the program. An internship is the missing link between academic studies and work experience. A professional internship program is unpaid as the main aim is for the intern to achieve their objectives.