Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
New employees, including college students, often experience expectation-reality gaps about work, making the assimilation process more difficult for all. This qualitative study explores the role of the internship in narrowing the work expectation-reality gap. This article addresses two research questions: (a) What do students learn about work through internships that they did not know before? (b) How is this new knowledge reflected in their advice to future interns? Analysis of 59 intern exit interviews or surveys reveals two categories of communication-related discovery that in turn influenced subsequent advice messages. Practical implications for business curriculum and career development programs are discussed.
Kathy Barnett (Thu,) studied this question.