Exploring the Factors challenging Virtual Internships during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An insight on students’ perspective in the United Arab Emirates universities

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic health restriction for almost two academic years brought considerable conditions to higher education learning methods and shifted to e-learning. Internships course is one of the courses where University students are obliged to shift the course attendance and accomplishment to be virtually or remotely. It still limited study about the factors that influence virtual internships conduction. The study aims to explore from students' perspectives the factors that influence virtual internships' conduction and their impact on students' academic achievement. A total of 214 surveys were distributed to university students in the United Arab Emirates who attended virtual internships during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study reveals that internships' flexibility, knowledge, quality, and collaboration are factors that significantly influence students' academic achievement in internships/training courses during the COVID-19 pandemic.