Evaluation of in-person and virtual internship learning outcomes in professional higher education

Abstract

Study programs in Professional Higher Education Institutions typically have the mandatory internship, with defined learning outcomes and ECTS expressed workload. When an internship is performed in exchange for ECTS credit, it must be strongly related to an academic discipline with defined set of learning outcomes. The goals and therefore learning outcomes, differ depending on the educational level and year of the study. At large, internship learning outcomes in professional higher education belong to two general categories: study program-specific learning outcomes and generic academic and soft skills outcomes. In previous years, the need for the development of a virtual model of internship and a platform for its implementation, suitable for performing work-based learning in Higher Education Institutions, is clearly recognized as the response to Industrial revolution 4.0. Even more, the significance of remote work-based learning emerged with the Covid 19 pandemics that disturbed work placed and hampered the implementation of professional practices, internship schemes, and all other forms of work-based learning. While different virtual internship schemes are developed throughout the educational systems, the question arise what are the advantages and disadvantages in the learning outcomes achievement in such work-based learning models. Here we discuss learning outcomes in professional higher education from the position of both traditional in-person internship and modern virtual internship.