Internship Experiences In Biomedical Engineering Technology: An Overview Of Students And Prospective Employers Perceptions

Abstract

Students pursuing an Associates Degree in Biomedical Engineering Technology at Penn State University are required to complete a 400-hour internship in an approved health care facility before graduation. This paper analyzes how the students perceive the need to be involved in the internship, including its effect on their professional development as well as on their ability to perform the tasks associated with their responsibilities. The students were asked to describe and summarize their experiences in the workplace in a daily log, to write a formal report describing in detail a project that they undertook and provide a comprehensive description of their experience. The effect of working in a Clinical Engineering department before graduation strongly increased the students' confidence in their strengths and made them aware of those items that required further attention and development. A very positive outcome from the cooperative experience was the full employment of all the students involved in the program, in the places where they carried out their internships or through contacts developed at that time. The paper also analyzes the results of a survey given to the students' supervisors. They were asked to describe and evaluate the qualities most needed in entry level biomedical engineering technicians, and how these qualities changed during the internship period for the students that they supervised. All the clinical engineering supervisors stressed the positive effects of the internship experience in creating qualified professionals in the field at the service of the society.

Hands-Off: Perceptions of Biomedical Engineering Technology Internships under a Global Pandemic

“…Other benefits to supervisors and departments identified in the survey include a temporary expansion of staffing, helping to promote the field, the possibility of learning different troubleshooting techniques from the intern, and having the opportunity to assist a new biomed in getting their career started and figuring out their interests. The benefits to students identified here align well with those discussed in previous studies [2]- [4], [6], as do a number of the identified benefits to supervisors [3], [6]. A few benefits to supervisors were not highlighted in previous publications, such as the supervisor learning new troubleshooting methods from the intern and opportunities to promote and grow the field.…”

“…There are few studies, for example, that focus on the benefits of the internship to the internship supervisors and the organizations they represent. While scholars recognize that mutual benefit is a goal of internship practices, most of the published studies focus on contributions the students make to the supervision site, ranging from picking up extra workload, motivating staff members to get involved in professional activities, and gaining a stronger appreciation for the skill sets that new hires bring to the table, such as relieving work load and motivating staff members (at the supervision site) to get involved [3], [6]. Part of the relative lack of scholarly attention may not be due to lack of interest.…”

“…Student learning and development during the internship experience occurs in the professional, academic, personal, and civic domains and can include knowledge, skills, and attitudes/values in each domain [1]. Specific examples of ways students benefit from internships include improving technical and soft skills, gaining confidence and an understanding of how the industry works, getting opportunities to interact with professionals, and acquiring real world experience [2]- [4], [6], [8]. Much of the existing research focuses on these benefits to students, while attention to other aspects of building effective, reciprocal internship practices is more limited.…”

Ready, Set, Go: Fostering Student Success in an Introductory Biomedical Engineering Technology Course

“…To date, almost no research has been conducted on student success pathways in biomedical engineering technology [2], [3], a gap this study seeks to fill with a mixed-methods study of student engagement and persistence in an introductory biomedical engineering technology course.…”