The Impact of College Internships on the Development of Tacit Managerial Knowledge and Career Confidence

Internships have become increasingly common for students pursuing an undergraduate degree, with one study finding that over half of college graduates in 2015 had completed an internship (“Percentage of Students With Internship Experience Climbs”, October 2015). Despite the large number of students completing an internship, research examining the impact of those internships on students is fairly limited. The purpose of this study was to examine the potential impact that internships provide to students, particularly in the areas of post-graduation career confidence and the development of tacit managerial knowledge. Tacit managerial knowledge is managerial knowledge that is acquired during the performance of everyday activities without conscious awareness of what is being learned. Tacit managerial knowledge is important in the framework of internships because it reflects the ability to learn from experience and apply the acquired knowledge in practical situations (Sternberg et. al, 2000). A survey was developed and administered to business students at two points in the undergraduate experience in order to compare results from upper-level students who have not completed either of the two required internships with students who have completed one internship and are enrolled in their second internship. It was hypothesized that students that have completed at least one internship experience will show greater levels of tacit managerial knowledge and greater career confidence than those individuals that have not completed an internship. Results of the study will be presented at the Undergraduate Research Conference