‘Diamonds Are Made Under Pressure’ Student Reflections of Work Integrated Learning Experiences

Jul 5, 202317 min read

Photo by Arkadiusz Kantor: https://www.pexels.com/photo/diamonds-15530564/

‘What are the perspectives of students on Work Integrated Learning experiences at the University of Newcastle?’

Introduction

Work Integrated Learning (WIL) is rapidly becoming a key instrument in the provision of tertiary education. In the last decades WIL has become increasingly popular in tertiary education, with a rise in its compulsory implementation into degree plans (Drysdale & McBeath 2018). The rise in the percentage of degree plans incorporating WIL into their curriculums demonstrates a shift in the structure of tertiary education to integrate more ‘work-ready’ and ‘transferable’ skill sets. This research project aims to answer the above research question through a process of qualitative data collection and analysis to determine the student perspectives and experiences of WIL.

This data has been collected through a process of interviews allowing students to go into depth about their experiences with their WIL and degree plans. In 2022, 37% of Australians aged 15-74 years had a Bachelor’s degree (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2022). The shifting curriculums in higher education directly impact these students and the experience of the pursuit of higher education. This research project aims to explore this and delve deeper to uncover findings that communicate experiences and outcomes of WIL perceived by students. Previous literature in this area is largely of a quantitative nature and focuses specifically on grading and academic performance of students in WIL programs. This literature gap presents a deficiency in qualitative data research of a constructivist nature on the personal perspectives of students.

Background and literature

The academic literature on WIL in the last decade records an increase in universities implementing WIL courses to promote ‘job-ready’ skills for their students (Drysdale & McBeath 2018). A study conducted by Drysdale & McBeath (2018) explores the motivation and study outcomes of students who participate in WIL courses. The study found students who did not engage with WIL courses had a lower grade-point average than those who did. The study takes a firm focus on psychological motivations of students and found that those who did not complete WIL programs were more likely to use ‘shallow-learning’ and ‘extrinsic’ strategies that encourage rope-learning and performance fatigue (Drysdale & McBeath 2018). The study used an online survey method to collect data from participants and construct a quantitative data analysis. These results are reflected in the Harris-Reeves & Mahoney (2017) that focused on the experiences of first-year university students’ participation in WIL courses. The outcomes and data collected focus on an academic metric similar to Maureen, Drysdale & McBeath (2018) in addition to an employability metric to measure the success of students. A survey ‘SPES” Self-perceived employability scale was given to participants before and after their placement to assess progress along with the tracking of the participants GPA scores. The study takes a quantitative focus to the experiences of students and concluded that students observed an increased confidence in employability and a raised GPA due to participation in the WIL programs. Moreover, studies that take a more qualitative focus on WIL course outcomes such as Smith, Ferns & Russell (2014) which aimed to explore the impact of WIL courses on the ‘work-readiness’ of students report similar results. The study conducted multiple rounds of research the first being a large survey of 3000 students, followed by a longitudinal open-ended interview with students and finally a series of phone interviews with alumni students. The results reflected a mutual benefit of WIL for industry, students and universities as well as the enhancement of student experiences with valuable employability skills.

The academic literature presents an overwhelming support for WIL initiatives. Most literature is predominantly quantitative in nature and focuses on academic performance metrics in addition to assessable employability metrics. My research builds on the recommendation of literature to further explore student experiences. The use of a qualitative approach has been utilised to explore in depth the gap in personal student experiences with WIL to greater demonstrate how WIL is perceived from a student perspective.

Research methods and ethics

This research project used the method of interview to obtain data. The method of interview was chosen for this research project as it most closely aligns with the constructivist paradigm and the qualitative nature of the study. The study explored experiences of students in relation to WIL courses, this is best suited to an interview methodology as it allowed for detailed qualitative data extraction (Waller, Farquharson & Dempsey 2016). Interview has been selected over a focus group method so that expressions of personal student experience may be discussed in depth with no barrier for group confirmation bias. Alumni as well as students with recent WIL experience, private work experience and compulsory work experience were targeted as participants to give a broad range of student perspectives. Moreover, methods such as survey, secondary data analysis and observation were not the most effective choice of method due to a lack of qualitative depth and the time constraints associated with the projects schedule.

The constructivist paradigm emphasises individuals own understanding of the world through feeling and reflecting on their experiences (Waller, Farquharson & Dempsey 2016). Interview as a method allowed for the in-depth data collection best suited to the constructivist paradigm that allowed for the expression of student’s personal experience. Further, the rich quality of that data allowed for a smaller sample to be targeted better aligning with the project’s schedule and scope (Waller, Farquharson & Dempsey 2016).

This research project used a mixed method of sampling including purposive sampling with additional use of modified snowball sampling. These methods of sampling were selected due to their accessibility to the researcher and further their characteristics lend themselves to the nature of the research project. Purposive sampling allows for access to a group through social connections (Waller, Farquharson & Dempsey 2016). The engagement of students with WIL experience was furthered through modified snowball sampling to achieve a desired sample. A total of four interviews were conducted of with two participants identifying as female and the other two identifying as male. Participants were engaged through the social connections of the researcher and further possible participants were informed of the project through an offer of the researcher’s details through the modified snowball sampling method (Waller, Farquharson & Dempsey 2016).

The inclusion criteria for this research project included being over the age of 18, being able to understand the consent and information forms and the individual’s status as a student or alumni of the University of Newcastle. These inclusion criteria ensured that care, consent and confidentiality were considered in the recruitment process. Further, the criteria of students and alumni ensured that participants were able to engage purposefully with the interview questions to produce data that formed an answer to the research question. Interviews were offered to be conducted in the home of the participant, the home of the researcher or a public space such as the university libraries reserved rooms, whichever the participant was most comfortable with. All interviews were audio recorded from two devices simultaneously to prevent any loss of data.

I recognise my responsibility as a researcher to maintain a high standard of ethics throughout my research and to ensure that consent, confidentiality and care are taken when working with participants and data (National Health and Medical Research Council 2007). This research project abides by the ethical considerations outlined in The National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (2007) and further took forward thinking and informed steps to ensure that the ethical codes of research were being considered at all stages of the project.

To ensure consent all participants were provided with a Participant Information Statement (PIS) and consent form. Both of these documents were read and considered by the participants before engaging with the research project. This ensured that participants are aware of the research parameters and gave signed consent to the interview process beforehand and were given time to consider their involvement. Further, confidentiality has been maintained through the use of pseudonyms and the de-identification of data. Data will be held in accordance with the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (2007), in a secure digital location with encryption controls and a password lock to ensure that no confidential information can be accessed by others. Care was ensured for participants through an open communication between researcher and participant, this includes providing mental health and university support contacts and helplines for sensitive topics that may have arisen in the interviews. All incidents that arose in the research process were disclosed to the lead researcher if sensitive ethics situations occurred. Furthermore, care included an approach to interviews that placed the participants comfort as paramount, offering participants the freedom to choose the location of their interview and withdraw from the research process at any time.

The data produced through the interview process went through stages of analysis in which it was transcribed, coded and analysed. The data underwent thematic coding and evaluation to select the most prominent findings from the data set. This process compared the four data sets and made connections between the appearance of thematic points of similarity and difference. Due to the limited data set and sample size the findings of this research project whilst true to participants personal narratives can not be taken as generalisable findings to a larger cohort. This data set provides an in depth and personal recount of the experiences of a small sample of students in regards to their experiences with Work Integrated Learning.

Findings

The project produced a plethora of findings, a dualistic approach to student perspectives emerged through the data coding process. The two core themes of ‘professional and practical skills’ and ‘student stress’ by far presented as core themes of student engagement with WIL. A neat relationship emerged between a positive perspective of valuable and recommended WIL experiences and a negative emotive perspective of stress, including concerns for the structuring and obligations placed on students during WIL. The following results will present findings under both core themes constructing a comparative analysis of negative and positive perspectives towards student experiences of WIL.

Professional and practical skills

Student expectation

All participants indicated a desire to obtain experience in a professional setting or encounter environments that provided them with more ‘hands-on’ and practical skill sets. This notion is reflected widely in broader literature relating to WIL. WIL is purported as a method of obtaining skills ‘necessary for work-readiness in professional education’ (Venville, Lynch & Santhanam 2018, pp.13). The expression of gaining professional and practical skill sets was evident in the data set when participants were asked what drew them to choosing their degree and placement type.

‘I wanted to get into a lab and start working and see what it’s like and then like see what labs were like outside of the uni and how other people work’ – Alex

‘I’d love to eventually get into more the surgical side of things, I’ve always stemmed from that, a wanting to progress but mainly just broadening my understanding and knowledge of the field’- Rose

Both Rose and Alex express a desire to be in practical and ‘hands-on’ settings referring to lab and surgical placements that offer an experience outside of the university to broaden understandings of their fields.

‘That’s what I was hoping for some industry experience, that’s the word industry experience and that’s what made me pick it’ – Hannah

‘Work Integrated Learning for me is actually what set me up to know what an engineer does and then become comfortable in an engineering environment’ – Campbell

Hannah and Campbell’s responses compliment those of Alex and Rose, they comment on a desire to experience professional environments. Hannah makes reference to ‘industry experience’ and Campbell comments on being able to experience an ‘engineering environment’. The broad consensus of desirable traits associated with WIL by students frames well the academic canon made about the benefits and roles of WIL in a tertiary setting by scholarly literature. From the participant responses a framing of WIL is presented that purports a level of practical and professional opportunity that is viewed as beneficial to students learning experiences. This notion is reflected in the broader body of literature on WIL which reflects an emphasis on practical and work-ready skill sets for tertiary graduates. The broader value placed behind WIL placements in literature has a key focus on transferable skill sets and engagement with industry and professional environments (Martin & Rees 2019).

Personal reflection

Moreover, the desires of participants to experience professional, practical and ‘hands on’ environments were reflected in their personal reflections on their WIL placements. When asked to discuss the most significant memory from their placements these qualities appeared in their responses.

Rose expresses her need for ‘hands-on’ learning to put theorical podiatry into practice and further how her experience at her WIL placement helped her do this.

‘The cadaver labs were the best memory it had just more for learning, hands-on actually seeing muscles in action on a body because that’s the most helpful for you, you can’t just look at a plasticised model because they don’t work the same so that’s been the most helpful and being hands on.’ - Rose

Moreover, a similar notion is expressed by Campbell, in which he expressed the value of being in a workshop and being able to apply skills learned in the university environment.

‘For me personally it’s getting in the workshop with technicians plus it’s fun and its where you learn the most and get inspired its where you get a lot of resilience as well because in an engineering environment technicians can often be the most harsh they don’t really care that much about your feelings…that’s good because you learn something and become a lot more resilient as well’

The above quotations are direct reflections on WIL experiences that place a value on being in a professional and practical environment. These findings further emphasise the value of WIL to students through expressing the need for the option to engage with hands-on and professional environments in higher education.

Student recommendation

All participants responded positively to being asked if they would personally recommend WIL to other students. The consensus from all participants was one that promoted the implementation of WIL into degree plans. When asked to reflect on their experience and express if they would recommend WIL to other students, these were their responses.

‘Yeah, 100% if you find a good place that’s literally where you become you start enjoying your course you actually learn what you are going to do in a job’ – Campbell

‘I think everyone needs to see things it can’t just all be in textbooks I think they need to go on work experience or they need to be able to have an opportunity to see what they will be studying in the real life’ – Rose

‘I think you should have to and I think that’s what the uni is pushing for… I suppose it also gives you a taste of what you’re going into, when you leave uni’ – Alex

‘I find it really beneficial to do hands on learning and experiences for me personally I can’t just sit in a lecture theatre and take in all the information from a lecturer talking at me’ – Hannah

Overwhelmingly the findings recorded from participants represent a positive perspective towards the implementation of WIL in tertiary degrees and purport the significance of it to student learning. This is further reflected in broader literature that notes a push in tertiary settings for the inclusion of more WIL and work placement-based courses. WIL is held as a highly desirable addition to tertiary qualification from the broader literary body and is seen as positive addition to degree plans that adds value to qualifications (Martin & Rees 2019).

Student stress

Moreover, whilst all participants reported that they would recommend WIL to students and expressed a desire to obtain practical and professional skill sets, a second theme emerged from the findings indicating levels of ‘student stress’. Participants indicated a level of emotional response relating to stress, time constraints, varying personal commitments and the structing and obligations of WIL. Alex expressed a high level of stress related to his placement saying at the time of completing his placement stating ‘I wish I didn’t do that I feel I’ve just lost three years of my life to stress’. Alex’s personal experiences of stress stemmed from the timing and structuring of his placement, which allowed little time for study and revision and had a significant work load.

‘I always did four courses every semester and I always did forty units and I’ve never been more stressed than when I was doing Work Integrated Learning’ – Alex

‘It was more than twenty units worth of work. I would say’ – Alex

A significant literature gap is present in current publications regarding WIL. A majority of publications focus on the academic grading and outcomes of placement students, these findings are often of a quantitative nature and lack the depth of personal experience afforded by qualitative data analysis. In these quotations above a high level of stress is expressed as well as a general feeling of being overwhelmed with the work load presented. These findings are something that is not often confronted in current literary publications in the area and should be further considered to enhance WIL experiences in high education settings.

Alex has not the only participant to report a level of concern about placement, Campbell expressed these sentiments in relation to his experiences with WIL. The engineering placement Campbell discusses in the quotes below is one that is self-sourced by students as a compulsory requirement of graduating a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Honours).

‘It’s super hard like you pretty much have to if you don’t know someone a lot of people know someone, they get into it but if you don’t know someone you are pretty much just sending cold emails’ – Campbell

‘Most people have to do it in their university breaks which is when people at university make the most money’ – Campbell

‘They are so worried about graduating on time… I guess I wish we did have more support because it’s a pain in the ass trying to find placement yourself and trying to find times and doing it in the holidays’ - Campbell

Campbell is the only participant whose placement and experience with WIL isn’t one that is directly associated with a university course but is still considered compulsory to his degree. In the above quotations Campbell expresses how difficult it can be to obtain placement ‘pretty much just sending cold emails’. He further elaborates on the time cost to students to pursue their placements in holiday breaks when university students usually make the majority of their income. Moreover, there is a clear expression of a negative emotive response associated with the structuring and obligations of WIL in Campbell’s degree plan that leads to a negative student experience.

Rose continued these sentiments in her statements expressing that in regards to her WIL the ‘Negative side is probably more the student stress’. The pressures of obligation and stress to students are mirrored in Rose’s responses.

RESEARCHER: Is that a compulsory requirement, it was to be a rural?

ROSE: Yeah, you have to do one rural one

RESEARCHER: For the twelve weeks out of your own pocket?

ROSE: Accommodation I had like friends and family out there so I stayed with them but that wouldn’t be paid for…you had to do extended hours otherwise it wouldn’t have been paid for nothing… and still be expected to umm maintain the hours at uni as well if you had to go in for labs

This excerpt of transcript comments on the financial burden placed upon students in WIL placements. Rose comments on how she would be unpaid for her placement unless she was working overtime. Additionally, she comments on the rural location of her placement bringing into account accommodation costs and further comments on her obligation to maintain other study commitments whilst on placement.

‘I do think that they need to consider more financial help, they can’t expect people to do things five days a week, work as well and care for your family’ - Rose

‘I could still work a little bit but they don’t offer a lot of things online and they hopefully have changed’ – Rose

Rose goes on to comment on how the university could consider a financial assistance for students and offering online components of study to allow for a more flexible WIL experience.

Conclusion

The experiences of students undertaking WIL in this study presented two prominent themes. A positive reception of experiences with professional and practical skill sets was explored along with a negative association of student stress with aspects of WIL placement. Scholarly literature reflects and compliments the aspects of positive benefits associated with professional and practical skill sets. Moreover, there is still a significant gap in scholarly literature that fails to reflect on students’ personal experiences with WIL and take a qualitative approach to student placement. Whilst WIL placements are seen in the findings to have associations to student stress WIL is still highly endorsed by the participants and exalted as a beneficial experience for students. This sentiment is present in the majority of scholarly publications that reflect a largely positive reception of WIL in tertiary education environments.

There were multiple suggestions made by students towards how the university could offer additional support and consider restructuring aspects of WIL courses to benefit student experience. This research has demonstrated how WIL can offer unique and valuable experiences to student’s tertiary educational experiences. Moreover, it has also made insights into how students experience levels of stress and negative emotion is regards to aspects of obligation and pressure. One participant expressed this by stating ‘Maybe it’s like diamonds are made under pressure’. Building upon the findings of this research, more study should be conducted of a qualitative nature on student experiences with WIL to greater understand how tertiary programs can elevate pressure from students so they may benefit from WIL without suffering additional pressures.

Reflection

My choice to conduct social research in the area of student experience and WIL stemmed from my own personal experiences as a student myself. I have a deep interest in understanding how the addition of WIL impacts a student’s experiences of tertiary education. The chosen focus on WIL stems from a surface level observation I’ve made over my time in my degree. I have observed an increased implementation of WIL into degree plans and this has driven me to want to find out more about this change and how it can shape the experiences of students. My own opinion on WIL is varied and throughout the course of the research project I’ve explored a range of perspectives to further orient my own personal position towards the topic. The choices made in this research project were made with best practice in mind regarding ethics and the constructivist research paradigm. I predicted that throughout the course of my research I may encounter barriers with organising interview schedules and to combat this I planned to be flexible with my time and try to organise interviews as soon as possible to avoid restrictive turnaround time for the transcription and data analysis process. Upon reflecting on my research process, I would have benefitted greatly from beginning my data coding earlier and utilising my Gantt chart more. Moreover, I recommend to future researchers in the area to continue to explore the qualitative nature of WIL experiences to greater uncover from longitudinal study the long-term impacts of WIL on experiences of tertiary education.

References

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2022, Education and Work, Australia, viewed 27 March 2023, https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/education/education-and-work-australia/latest-release

Drysdale, MTB, McBeath, M 2018, ‘Motivation, self-efficacy and learning strategies of university students participating in work-integrated learning’, Journal of Education and Work, vol. 31, no.5-6, pp. 478-488, doi: 10.1080/13639080.2018.1533240

Harris-Reeves, B & Mahoney, J 2017, ‘Brief work-integrated learning opportunities and first-year university students’ perceptions of employability and academic performance’, Australian Journal of Career Development, vol. 26, no.1,pp. 32-37.

Martin, AJ & Rees, M 2019, Student Insights: The Added Value of Work-Integrated Learning, International Journal of Work-Integrated Learning, vol.20, no.2, pp.189-199.

National Health and Medical Research Council 2007, The National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research, viewed 27 March 2022, https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/about-us/publications/national-statement-ethical-conduct-human-research-2007-updated-2018

Smith, C, Ferns, S & Russell, L 2014, ‘The impact of Work integrated learning on student work-readiness, The impact of Work integrated learning on student work-readiness: Final Report’, Curtin University of Technology, LSN Teaching Development Unit.

Venville, A, Lynch, B & Santhanam, E 2018, A systematic approach to the evaluation of the student experience in work-integrated learning, International Journal of Work-Integrated Learning, vol. 19, no. 1, pp.13-21.

Waller, V, Farquharson, K & Dempsey, D 2016, Qualitative Social Research: contemporary methods for the digital age. London: Sage.