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Experience and understanding was undoubtedly one of the most common themes to emerge from the data sources. The vast majority (98%) of WIL students felt that the skills and abilities that they obtained during their work was invaluable to their career development in some way. Christian summarized his thoughts:
I have learned so much from this internship that I would not have been able to otherwise learn from class. The work experience that I have gained will help me in the future to be able to stay on task and to be able to identify the manufacturing processes of a production line.
The experiential learning provided by these WIL placements definitely impacted the learning cycle for many students helping them to advance and secure a greater knowledge base with each new project or challenge. As an example, Glenn stated that he “could not have had a better experience.” The complexity of the manufacturing facility widened his “range of knowledge on all areas of a manufacturing plant.”
Within the theme of Experience and Understanding, there are several elements that are displayed. Students discussed issues like competencies and skills obtained from work. In particular, communication was one ability that was highlighted most often. Responsibility was a concept that appeared to interconnect with the idea of experience, so this element will also be examined in further detail as well.
Competencies and Skills
The topic of specific competencies and skills was one of the more often discussed
elements relating to the experience gained by the WIL participants. Most of the students relayed their perceptions of how they were impacted by the abilities that they learned during their work
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placements. In particular, the respondents touched on issues such as: technical skills, understanding processes, problem solving, soft skills, and the value of these competencies.
Technical Skills
Technical skills and specific applications were an issue that was discussed by many of the WIL students. Several of the participants commented on the varying exposure and experiences with software and applications used in the professional setting. Some of the programs like Microsoft Excel are widely used in a variety of industries and businesses. Other applications, like AutoCAD or Creo are utilized in specific professions like engineering. The WIL placements afforded the students a chance to try out these tools and gain in their proficiency levels.
Charlotte discussed her experience in relation to this and revealed an increased confidence in her ability to use some of those applications. Her assignments required her to become “a lot more comfortable with using Excel” and she “learned more shortcuts which will make assignment completion at school quicker.”
As an accountancy student, Faith also showed signs of increased self-assurance in her ability to use professional applications following her work with a major electronics
manufacturer. She expressed her thoughts, “I feel a lot stronger in that and…obviously a lot of Excel skills…lots of understanding what a quality presentation is.”
Some of the students shared how their mentors or other professionals provided assistance in learning these applications. Jack’s experiences with engineering firms allowed him to work alongside an engineer that was willing to share his knowledge in Excel and other software. He relayed this story, “I definitely know Excel was one of those that I use tremendously at work. I even had one of the actual active engineers give me a lesson at least once a week on different apps…very complicated things.”
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Other students like Mac found themselves immersed in projects that required them to build on their knowledge and go in depth on the tools and applications needed to complete the task at hand. Mac’s comments seemed to reveal a mixture of amazement and exasperation at how much he was asked to dive into specific programs in order to do his job. He exclaimed:
I got really good at coding. I also got pretty damn good at Excel sheets. Oh my God, the tables I've made! Being able to sort through things and find like the smallest little inconsistency…data mining, organization, graphing…I got really good at that.
James also provided comments on the variety of technical skills and competencies that he gained experience in during his year-long co-op with a global manufacturing company. He asserted, “I have gained project management, team leadership, AutoCAD, Excel, Visio, public speaking, data analysis and process improvement skills. I believe each of these will be valuable for any engineering or manufacturing job in the future.” James was able to identify a toolkit, of sorts, that he obtained and that he felt would bring him value in his future career.
Understanding Processes
“I'm able to be more analytical and really figuring out processes.” Nick’s business internship provided him with an opportunity to see the importance of understanding a process. He believed that his ability to analyze and diagnose issues in a process would serve him well in his career. As an engineering student, Jennifer O. appeared to see the same value in managing and maintaining the efficiency of a process. She also visualized how this ability could translate into other professional aspects of engineering. On this subject Jennifer O. said that, “Reliability taught me how to keep a process running and take care of machinery. As a mechanical engineer, this is incredibly valuable if I work in other areas like design or process engineering.” Curtis also offered his thoughts on grasping process flow, “Understanding how those systems work,
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you know, gaining a lot of experience in that gave me that competency.” His experience with processes in his engineering co-op’s, certainly gave him a sense of confidence as he advanced in his career.
Marissa’s WIL experience in accounting also revealed to her the value of understanding how those professional processes functioned. She shared that her internship taught her, “How to review and quickly learn an entire process start to finish and how to review and analyze the material in a way that I and others can understand it.” Marissa’s statement showed that she not only gauged the importance of knowing how procedures and processes flowed, but she also saw the value in being able to communicate that to others.
As an accounting student, Frank’s summer internship provided insight into the actualities of how the financial systems of business truly worked as opposed to the sanitary examples provided in academia. He observed, “I'd never really done anything besides schoolwork in accounting… so when I actually got to do it for real, it was a lot more messy and a lot more work than it is in class.” The complexities of the accounting functions of a business were certainly on full display for Frank in his internship. These lessons revealed the messy and complicated nature of the system which provided a chance for Frank to expand his knowledge base as he returned to school and proceeded towards his future career in accounting.
Problem Solving
Understanding and analyzing a process is an essential part of problem solving as well. Problem solving skills were an element that was commonly mentioned by the research
participants. Curtis’ experience as a co-op exposed him to the challenge of solving engineering problems. He also found the environment to be quite different from the challenge of course assignments. Curtis discovered that when you are assigned a project at work then your
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supervisors “expect you to figure it out.” He felt that problem solving in school was “spoon-fed” to students, but found things to be “more abstract in the real world.” According to Curtis, the professional world is “a lot more independent where you have to go out and figure that stuff out for yourself.” Curtis touched on how one’s process knowledge can directly integrate with
problem solving skills. He illustrated how an individual’s previous experience or other resources could be beneficial in addressing new issues.
Jack’s previous work experience provided him with a sense of persistence in facing down problems on the job. He observed that “most of the little problems that you hit, they seem like problems at the beginning right when you hit them.” By working through issues independently, Jack was able “to build up more of a confidence” in himself. He also discovered how
“determined” he was “to continue even when something” seemed like it was in his way. Jack’s comments indicated that his persistence allowed him to find success and confidence in solving problems. With each new issue, he utilized his previous experiences to help on the next case. Again, this reflected the nature of how WIL placements help expand and advance the
participants’ abilities as they continuously progress through the learning cycle.
Armstrong also touched upon the connection between analyzing a process and being able to identify potential problems. He observed that communication with others was often one of the most helpful aspects of identifying problems. In his estimation, “Ninety percent of my problems that I did find were just from letting people tell me what they don't like about it. If their solution saves money or makes products faster, then I'm all for it and I'll implement it.” In this
observation, Armstrong also identified another relationship related to the theme of Experience and Understanding. He revealed how employing soft skills enhanced the problem solving process.
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Interpersonal interaction is discussed in a later section, but in terms of tangible abilities, many respondents expressed an appreciation for the usefulness of soft skills in the professional world. Table 6 provides a brief glimpse of some of the perspectives that the research subjects shared regarding soft skills.
Table 6
Competencies & Skills: Soft Skills
Pseudonym Data Source Comment
Fredford Interview In terms of soft skills that goes back to overall organization, communication, social, all of that whole well rounded picture of how you fit into a workplace as a person and what you can contribute to that company and the people around you.
Keith Interview I think there's almost more soft skills than hard skills just figuring out how to talk to people and deadlines and what's required of you even though it's not specifically stated right.
Tony Interview I mean there's just a number of miscellaneous things that it taught me throughout that I can't always put into words… Armstrong Interview As skill that I learned, I wouldn't have known that if I hadn't have
got taken the initiative to go talk to people.
Eloise Co-op Report Overall, it is the non-technical things you learn that are most important. Things that affect your attitude are more important than equations and calculations.
Dan L. Interview You know a company is continuously going to be throwing you into a new medium...with client facing, that's nerve wracking the first couple times you do it. After that it becomes more natural and you know how to prepare better.
Caroline Co-op Report It has been amazing to see how my chemical engineering classes apply to industry, to develop communication and interpersonal skills, to increase my technical knowledge and application skills…
It can often be difficult to consistently define the term soft skills. It seems that each individual holds their own understanding of the concept. In Table 7, Fredford offered his specific view of what soft skills meant to him. He saw the idea as connected to interpersonal abilities and how one contributed to the workplace. Keith’s internship with a securities firm
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gave him an appreciation for the value of soft skills over even the more technical aspects of the profession. This opinion was also supported by Eloise. Dan’s experience in interacting with clients revealed to him that soft skills were abilities that could be practiced and honed with continued experience. Once again, as participants advanced through their jobs those experiences provided an expanded knowledge base allowing the individual to continue to become
increasingly proficient in that skillset. Finally, Caroline expressed her appreciation that her engineering co-op afforded her valuable technical abilities and soft skills including
communications.
Value of Competencies
The final topic of discussion related to competencies and skills obtained during WIL experiences touches on the value of the abilities students earn during their work. The value to students does not only come in terms of monetary transactions, but perhaps more importantly in the doors that can be opened for students as a result of their experiences. Austin’s internship with a defense manufacturer has already served him well, as he illustrated, “Being able to talk to people about that…it really has opened doors, professionally, that would not have been opened otherwise.” James also appreciated the value that his experience brought in giving him access to new opportunities. He said that it has helped him, “because now I have experience and that's gotten me in the door of a lot of places that I wouldn't have been able to interview with.” Bill also felt that his prior engineering work would help advance his career. He commented that he’s gained, “a wide variety of skills that I've at least gotten to develop and I feel like that's going to greatly benefit me when I go to my first job…that I already have experienced for these skills.” Keith also told of how his internship in finance could help him break into a difficult industry. He asserted that, “The development of professional skills is definitely one of the biggest components
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and also understanding the industry…You cannot break into this industry without prior internships because academic knowledge and personal knowledge of this industry are worlds apart.” Curtis’ also touched on how academic knowledge differed from actual work experience. He asserted, “I think the experience is everything. There's a reason that employers look for experience on the resume, because you learn a lot more from experience than you do from books.”
Finding employment after graduation can be challenging. Competition can be a difficult hurdle in securing lucrative positions for recent graduates. Fredford saw his WIL experience as giving him an edge in the job market. “From the technical standpoint in terms of applying for full time jobs now, it'll definitely serve me better,” he declared. According to Fredford, work experience would help students get “higher on that rung” and could “obviously bring you closer to whatever goal you're trying to go for.”
Communication
As the previous section illustrated, gains in skills were one of the primary advantages that WIL participants took from their work experiences. Communication certainly qualifies as one the skills that students acquired, so much so, that it warrants further examination. The
importance of communication was mentioned by a segment of the respondents. These
individuals shared examples of how they came to value and acquire useful skills in this particular competency. The following section highlights specific elements of communication which were shared by the WIL participants. These concepts showed how communication connects to: gaining understanding, conflict resolution, presentation skills, and persuasiveness.
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“I learned better communication skills especially in situations when I needed clarification on how to complete a project, or if I needed to report the completion of a project.” Charlotte’s comments here illustrated how communication was necessary to gain understanding of an assignment or to clarify expectations from a supervisor or co-worker. During her work placements, she also began to appreciate the need for feedback from her manager. Charlotte observed that “proper communication skills” also tied “well with getting feedback.” She stated, “I was encouraged to request feedback from my manager at least every three weeks to keep me updated on my progress at the job, and to point out mistakes that need immediate correction.” Charlotte saw the value in having regular input from her supervisor, so that she could ensure clarity in the expected direction of her work. Austin also expressed that “a good coping skill for me was to go and talk to people…talking to my supervisor and getting clarification.”
One of the key aspects of communicating and understanding is certainly an ability to hear and absorb the feedback that is shared by others. Several participants presented their improved listening abilities as a result of their work experience. Mac remarked, “Listening is a large skill that's improved over the past year, and I will be able to implement it constantly. I feel as if I can now look beyond what a person is saying and see their perspective.” His comments revealed growth in his listening skills and a keen sense of how it will be helpful to him in the future. Mac now sees the importance of understanding the views of others. Gus conveyed a similar sentiment regarding his improved listening skills following his engineering internship. “I guess, I tend to listen to people more instead of cutting them off…I listen to their point of view to see how we could work together on it.”
As Mac and Gus observed, an increased appreciation for the perspective of others is a central aspect in gaining understanding as a professional. However, communication should not
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flow in only one direction in order to be effective in the workplace. There needs to be a balance. Robert experienced how information and thoughts should move in both directions. He related:
I just kind of learned to work with the people up and down the chain. You kind of have to adjust your behavior in the way you talk and understanding other people's viewpoints when you're trying to get something done. It’s one thing to understand…trying to communicate my viewpoint, but trying to understand and trying to figure out a way to make the point…see eye to eye.
Robert revealed an increased appreciation for the difficulty in navigating communication methods at work, but he also showed a growth in this skillset.
Conflict Resolution
Often times, the WIL students learned the value of communication the hard way, through examples of poor communication. Several respondents shared tales of how workplace conflicts were born of misunderstandings. Bill offered a story from his engineering internship. There were situations where he “disagreed with people that were very high above” him, and he thought that he “was right at times.” He learned that disagreements were not always personal. Bill reflected, “It taught me, even though it's frustrating, a lot of the times it's just a
miscommunication and nothing more than that.”
Jennifer’s work experiences also showed her the problems that stem from
miscommunication. She recalled one very frustrating incident in which she had a disagreement with an engineering manager. After being initially angry over the situation, she eventually realized the root cause of the incident:
Communication is really important…definitely communication. I would say the only kind of conflicts I had with people were just solely miscommunications. If I wasn't
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working well with someone it's because we either weren't meeting enough, or we were