One-Year Internship Program on Software Engineering: Students' Perceptions and Educators' Lessons Learned

TL;DR

This study examines a year-long software engineering internship program at RMIT University, analyzing student perceptions and lessons learned over a decade to improve internship effectiveness and industry readiness.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of a 10-year internship program, identifying challenges, beneficial aspects, and offering recommendations for educators and companies.

Findings

Identified three main student challenges during internships.

Highlighted internship components perceived as most beneficial.

Proposed actionable recommendations for enhancing internship experiences.

Abstract

The inclusion of internship courses in Software Engineering (SE) programs is essential for closing knowledge gaps and improving graduates' readiness for the software industry. Our study focuses on year-long internships at RMIT University (Melbourne, Australia), which offers in-depth industry engagement. We analysed how the course evolved over the last 10 years to incorporate students' needs and summarised the lessons learned that can be helpful for other educators supporting internship courses. Our qualitative analysis of internship data based on 91 reports during 2023-2024 identified three challenge themes the students faced, and which courses were found by students to be particularly beneficial during their internships. On this basis, we proposed recommendations for educators and companies to help interns overcome challenges and maximise their learning experience.