holding power of internships: analyzing retention in a school-to-career program, The

Community College Enterprise, The, Fall 2004 by Ryken, Amy E

By determining the total number of 11th grade students who worked in internships, the number who did not work in internships, and the number who did not persist in the program, the author calculated 11th grade drop-out rates in relation to internship participation. Of 11th graders who did not participate in summer internships, 73.4% (47 of 64) dropped out of the high school program before entering the 12th grade. Only 16.1% (31 of 192) eleventh graders who completed internships dropped out.

Of 12th grade students in the program, 100% (all 178) graduated from high school. These findings provide evidence that the program's summer internships created and enhanced students' commitment to continue in the program or, conversely, that students who were willing to work in summer internships were those students who were committed to continuing in the program.

Milestone 2: entering college

The second program milestone is college entrance. Evidence shows that internships encouraged commitment to continue education at the community college level. Over 90% of 12th grade students in the program continued to post-secondary education. In contrast, a study by the National Science Foundation (2000) found that only 49% of African-American, 57% of Latino and 68% of White high school graduates were enrolled in college by the October following graduation.

The program maintained records on students who chose to attend the partner community college. Information about post-secondary attendance at institutions other than the community college partner was based on student self-report. Unlike other school-to-work and Tech Prep programs where students did not take advantage of articulation between high school and college (Pedraza et al., 1997; Grubb et al., 1996), the majority of participating 12th grade students attended the partner community college. In interviews, students described the program as a clear educational and career pathway that provided a concrete link between high school, college and work.

Here you take only science, you have to pass to get the certificate, you have a job waiting for you. You know what you're going to get. At [another community college] you are just taking classes to transfer. This program helps you look at the future. It gives you a time line of where you are headed. In the program you know where you are going, and where you will end up, if you want to get there.

Internship participation in high school affects college enrollment rates. As shown in Table 1, students who worked in internships entered the partner community college at higher rates (55.9%) than students who did not (41.2%); and students who worked in internships planned to enter another 2-year college at higher rates (12.4%) than students who did not (0%). These findings provide evidence that summer internships encouraged a commitment to education at the community college level. Students who worked in internships planned to enter 4-year colleges at lower rates (26.1%) than those who did not work in internships (35.3%). The finding is not surprising, as students planning to attend 4-year colleges often choose to participate in summer college bridge programs or take advanced courses at local community colleges, rather than work in paid internships.