The impact of the evaluation of summer internships on student self-assessment of and opinion on educational outcomes obtained by the second students of Public Health.

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: : Summer internships constitute an essential component of the curriculum and have the greatest impact on preparing students for entering the labour market. Mandatory practical training for Warsaw Medical University students is usually held during summer internships. The study aimed to analyse the impact of the evaluation of summer internships on student self-assessment of and opinion on educational outcomes obtained by the second-cycle degree students of Public Health. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study involved 87 graduates (15 men and 72 women) from the second-cycle degree programme in Public Health at the Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Warsaw Medical University. The study enrolled second-cycle degree students who graduated in the academic year 2015-16. A questionnaire return rate was 97% (85/87). Mean age of the study population amounted to 25.85 years (min. 23; max. 51; SD 4.550). A voluntary questionnaire study was conducted between July and September 2016. The study used an anonymous questionnaire developed by the authors at the Department of Education and Research in Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Warsaw Medical University, based on the the list of educational outcomes adopted by the resolution of Warsaw Medical University Senate. The default significance level was established at 0.05. RESULTS: Most students participating in the study reported that their internships were valuable for them and had a positive impact on the level of achievement of educational outcomes included in the curriculum for the second-cycle degree programme in Public Health. Internships had significantly influenced the opinion of students participating in the study on the achievement of educational outcomes related to this area (rS = 0.24, p = 0.027). It was shown that a better assessment of internship went hand in hand with better self-assessment of student's knowledge. CONCLUSIONS:Despite an overall positive assessment of summer internships, they did not have a significant impact on the level of achievement of educational outcomes and student self-assessment. Therefore, there is a need for further assessment of the quality of summer internships, varification of internship placements and development of an internship database for students.