Internship: A realistic job preview and selection mechanism

Abstract

This paper aims to put forward the benefits and utility of internship programmes for organisations, employers and interning students. It suggests conceptualising internship as a realistic job preview experience for interns. It questions if “being in the situation” gives a new set of relevant reference points for future pragmatic decisions to an intern and the organisation in assessing work environment and benefits attached for self-development. It also underlines the importance of increasing the information quality in an internship programme to improve recruitment image of an organisation and create employability of an intern in the industry, which are mainly affected by the dynamic concepts of economies and employment. Approach: The paper adopts a discursive analysis to present the importance of increasing the information quality in internship programmes and increasing its contribution to recruitment and selection process and employability of individuals. Findings: Information quality in a general management sense emerges as the key to provide deeper meaning and contributes value to the processes created for transfer of skills and knowledge, and add value to the recruitment exercise, especially in nonlinear economies. Practical Implication: High-quality information programmes contribute to employability, career development for the intern and recruitment brand image for the host in the digital age. Originality: The relationship between internship, realistic job preview experience and information quality is one which bear the same cohesive structural functionality and are based on the utility for the emerging demands of the market.