Abstract:

The paper presents a study of perception of companies that have been involved in a learning environment, which considers a closed University/Industry collaboration. The experience has been based on a learning process that consists of an abstract conceptualization of learning components, their experimentation in a controlled environment and subsequent application in real projects, which are carried out with the active participation of regional and national companies. The goal has been to take the study program into the business reality and, in this way, facilitates the student learning process by actively using an experiential learning model. The application of this methodology has allowed students no only to acquired knowledge but also has facilitated the transition of that knowledge to its practical application by answering needs and requirements expressed by real companies and organizations. The result has been the achievement of an enriched learning environment in which student can experience real-world situations in which they can actively participate.

The study analyses the experiences reported by companies and organization that have been involved with the students’ information and communication technology (ITC) projects. It is hypothesized that three constructs impact on companies’ perception of student performance. To clarify the relationships among these constructs, structural equation model (SEM) is conducted to examine the model fit. The SEM results clearly demonstrate that there exist close interrelations among the constructs. Data was collected from companies that were participants of the program by mean of a structured questionnaire, which was performed to companies’ representative to capture their opinion upon the work performed by the students. The results provide empirical evidence of the perception that companies have over students’ performance during their participation on companies’ ITC projects as well as proposed solutions to companies’ requirements. That evidence confirms that companies have mainly shown a positive perception of the work done by the students. This favorable assessment is based on the interaction of the students with company's representatives, the performance during their participation on companies’ ITC projects, and the results and solution provided to companies’ requirements.

Keywords:

University/Industry Collaboration, experiential learning, IT projects.