Abstract:

The purpose of this research is to discuss in depth the planning of a Graphic Design and Digital Media education internship program. Students in this field can learn practical professional design abilities and plan their future directions through internship. The research involved four main stages: (1) Understanding; (2) Proposing; (3) Realizing; and (4) Evaluating. However, this paper covers the first two stages. The researcher used “analysis of the literature,” “questionnaires,” “semi structured interviews” and “case studies” to propose a model plan for an internship program in the Graphic Design and Digital Media Department in Princess Noura University through the following: 1) Understanding the conditions of conducting a female internship program in Saudi Arabia; and 2) Identifying the roles of the interns, the department and the companies in the Internship Program.

The results showed that the professional practices internship is a new concept in females’ education in Saudi Arabia. Students mis-understood their roles. Though students believe that visiting the companies enhance their decision for prospective Internship Company, their visits are very limited. The majority of the students consider the availability of a separate female section as the most important criteria in selecting the prospective company regardless of the types of business and the working rules and regulations in the company. Companies’ lack of awareness of the benefits of accepting interns causes a large number of refusals.
According to the achieved understanding of the conditions of conducting internship, recommendations were proposed regarding the roles of the departments, students and companies. The need of Internship and Graduates Unit establishment were presented. Moreover, the internship course was located within the study plan, the Internship Course Grading was planned and the Internship Handbook was developed.

Finally, the main stages of the pre-internship process were presented. This will be implemented and an evaluation during the post internship stage will be conducted on further research.

Keywords:

Internship, Graphic Design and Digital Media, students internship, companies role.