A distinct program in President University compared to other universities is its two-semester internship program, which is performed in the 4th and 7th semesters by registered students of President University. Those students must have finished their 6th semester and have been approved by the university and accepted by a company or institution or organization in Indonesia, specifically and overseas in general.
Internship program in President University is a part of the university’s academic programs during four-year academic period, which is a concrete way to learn through experience working in related industries. The setting of the internship program offers captivating and constructive chances for practical learning and operates as a bridge between education and business.
Through the internship program, the students encounter the knowledge transfer obtained in classrooms to tasks such as problem solving, critical thinking and working as a member of a team. Fundamentally, by getting the opportunity to join the internship program, students can get the point of view of how working environments are and how to get involved together with other colleagues on the field.
During the internship program, both academic supervisor and on-site supervisor will supervise the intern students.
Academic supervisors are registered lecturers of President University and agreed by the university management. They provide academic advice to the interns on how to examine the job and relate it to the theory they learned in classes. Besides that, academic supervisors should direct the intern to prepare the internship final report and frequently meet them on the spot. Providing conventional information to the management about the performance of the interns is also one of the academic supervisor’s responsibilities. At the end of the internship program, they sit as panel members on the final evaluation and grading the interns.
While on-site supervisors are staffs in the companies or organizations recommended by the university or chosen by the companies themselves who will be responsible for introducing the interns to key people within the company and willing to supervise day-to-day activities of the interns. They will familiarize the interns with the office equipments and procedures. Another thing is on-site supervisors guarantee the security of the interns and provides company’s code of conduct. At the end of the internship program on-site supervisors write final report as they are the persons the intern asks for questions to regarding the tasks assigned.
Furthermore, the internship program of President University has some aims. First purpose is to expand the students’ learning experiences related to career-oriented objectives. Another aim is to build up the students’ skills to achieve performance goals based on the responsibilities and duties associated with entry-level positions in merchandising. Last purpose of the internship program is to develop the students’ abilities to measure and direct attainments of specified performance goals.
The internship program itself has several evaluative expectations such as the success of the interns in achieving the learning objectives and scopes of work, the students’ development of key competent and skills, unforeseen accomplishments of the interns, the students’ personal and professional developments as well as the students’ development for the future use regarding the resources and the contacts.
Besides the points mentioned above, the internship program also enhances the essential criteria of the interns like the quality of work performance, working relationship with others, oral and written communication skills, maturity, leadership characteristics, initiative, motivation, willingness to accept responsibilities and the interns’ overall performance.
Mohammad Reiza 