Impact of Internship Program on Engineering and Technology Education in Ethiopia: Employers’ Perspective

Abstract

Since the introduction of the ETIP in 2009 in Ethiopia, every year all engineering and technology colleges and faculties run an internship program for a period of four months. As a result, considerable amount of effort and resources are being invested while its impact on the quality of the engineering and technology education is not yet evaluated. The aim of this paper is therefore, to present the impact of the mandatory Engineering and Technology Internship Program (ETIP) in views the employer’s perspective based on a nationwide assessment study. Primary data was collected from different sector employers using a standard survey questionnaire. Sample size is determined by using general sample size formula with 5% significant level or 95% confidence interval. In the study, from a sample of 103 different sector industries 182 individuals of different in various positions were selected.The major findings of the survey revealed that the length of internship period and working hours in the industry, appropriate supervision and mentorship and provision of appropriate resource during internship as the top influencing factors for internship program to bring the intended impact on the technology and engineering education in Ethiopia. Despite the various advantages inherent in internship programs, the study reveals that undergraduate students internship program still faces lots of challenges including lack of strict placement procedures, limitation of academic mentorship, poor supervisory practice in the industry, and variations in learning facilities both at universities and in the company.Finally, the study concludes that to improve the quality of the present internship education program and to insure its future sustainability, institutional linkages between the universities and host organizations is the number one priority.