Identifying factors influencing graduate students’ decision to not participate in the Northwood Technical College architectural commercial design program internship class elective

Plan BInternships, one form of work-based learning, have always been viewed as a positive asset on everyone’s resume. It has become more popular for college curriculums across the United States to offer internship opportunities for their students, and sometimes require an internship to graduate. Every year, Northwood Technical College’s architectural commercial design program offers an elective internship class. Even though research has shown there are many benefits to completing an internship, participation at Northwood Tech in the internship class elective has been very low. The focus of this study was to identify perceptions former graduate students have of the internship class elective, and to assess what barriers exist, if any, for graduates that did not participate. It was concluded that former graduates had positive perceptions of internships but felt it was not necessary to participate when attending a two-year college program. This information was shared with administration to aid future students who may be interested in an internship for further career development. Given these findings, the architectural commercial design program at Northwood Technical College can further enhance a program that is already considered unique in the state of Wisconsin