2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) has gained global attention as a means of enhancing graduates' employability and learning outcomes. In China, WIL has been identified as a national strategy to elevate the quality of engineering education. This study investigates the effectiveness of the French engineering education model of WIL internships in the unique cultural and educational landscape of China by examining the perceptions of Chinese students enrolled in a Sino-French engineering program. Grounded in views of situated learning, the research explores the role of internships in students' learning and professional development, as well as the facilitating and impeding factors.

Nineteen final-year students participated in in-depth semi-structured interviews, providing insights into their internship experiences. The findings reveal that internships contribute to competence development and facilitate the transition from higher education to the world of work. However, students face challenges in balancing coursework, thesis, and internships, navigating relationships with university supervisors and industry mentors, and reconciling the dichotomy of generalization and specialization. The study emphasizes the importance of considering the sociocultural context in which WIL is embedded and highlights the agency exercised by students in shaping their perceptions of the engineer's role, qualifications, and career paths in the community of practice.

This research contributes to the international discourse on WIL by providing insights into the experiences of Chinese students in a Sino-French engineering program, offering valuable implications for the implementation and enhancement of WIL in diverse cultural and educational contexts.