A number of connections must be acquired in order to develop efficient and positive internship arenas for students and partners. Different systems and people must be tied together to provide a win-win situation for everyone involved. The internships take place over a limited period of time, with clear requirements for relevant learning outcomes. Experiences from industry partners, students and universities show that ensuring a successful internship period is challenging and can offer frustration and limited learning outcomes if one fail to establish the right connections and workflow.

Becoming a university internship partner ensures a closer collaboration with academia, and can also strengthen the company, its management staff, and employees. In this project, we will develop models and practical tools that can prepare all partners involved for the internship, and be used by everyone involved in the internship period.

Through digital workshops, student leaders with experience from internships and internship mentors from our faculty will be cooperating. The aim is to develop tools and models that can reduce friction, increase learning outcomes, and strengthen the relation between students, industry partners, and the university. Tools and material will be based on digital solutions and will be evaluated continuously. We will identify the “best practice” and provide platforms for sharing and continuous learning

These are the goals of the university internship partner:

• To serve as a link between the university and the industry
• Develop a digital mentorship training program for the internship partners
• Develop pedagogical tools that can be used in connection with student’s internship that can be useful in the partners' effort to develop their permanent staff.
• Identify the characteristics of a university internship partner