There are two components in our students' 5th and final year of study; one is an internship, and the other is a thesis. As a company or organization, you can collaborate with students on either or both of these elements.
During the internship, students work with a company or organization on professionally relevant projects or tasks. These projects or tasks should allow the student to combine their knowledge from their studies with the company's daily practices. During the thesis period, students delve into an academically relevant problem area. In both forms of collaboration, there is mutual benefit between the parties involved.
Collaborating with the student involves not only the student and your company or organization but also an academic supervisor from the university. The student takes the lead in ensuring that the project is academically relevant and engages in close dialogue with both your company or organization and the academic supervisor.
Through an internship collaboration, you can have a student join your team. This can provide you with new knowledge, fresh perspectives on daily challenges, and assistance in solving specific tasks. The internship allows the student to apply their academic skills in a company, institution, or organization and gain experience in how these skills, acquired during their education, create results and value in the workplace.
For the sake of understanding, it is referred to as an internship, but formally, it is called a project-oriented program. The student remains enrolled in their educational program during the collaboration and therefore needs to work on tasks that are relevant to their studies and fulfill examination obligations. Throughout the internship, the student is required to develop portfolio assignments, which aim to support the student's academic reflection on the program.
Therefore, it is an important part of the student's internship, and one of the company's or organization's obligations is to ensure that time is allocated for this purpose.
An internship program typically starts around August and ends in early December, as it should last a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 months. You should discuss the exact period with the student. The regulations may change at times, and the student is aware of the specific requirements.
Students begin applying for internships early in the new calendar year. By early May, students formally decide whether they will pursue an internship, but it is still possible to find a student for an internship after that. For more information, please read here.
The student is not allowed to receive a salary for the internship, as they receive financial support (SU) throughout the program. However, a token of appreciation may be given as a gesture for their stay and efforts (up to a maximum of 3000 DKK per month as of 2018).
Create an internship posting that describes your company or organization, the desired profile, and the specific tasks involved in the internship. Once you have made a verbal agreement, it is the student's responsibility to create a written agreement with your company or organization.
In a master's thesis, the student delves into a academically relevant topic that can also generate value and new knowledge for your company or organization.
A master's thesis can be analytical, methodological, or theoretical in nature, and it may involve the student creating a tangible product.
As a rule, the thesis serves as the final component of the master's program, which provides a solid basis for recruitment.
The thesis process typically begins in early January and concludes in early June, after which the thesis is evaluated.
The students start narrowing down their thesis topics in the fall, which may coincide with their internship period for some students. The specific requirements may vary, but the student is aware of them.
It is the student's responsibility, in collaboration with their supervisor and your company or organization, to ensure that the thesis is academically relevant and falls within the student's field of study.
When entering into an agreement with the student, you can collectively decide whether the student's designated workspace will be at your company or organization, at the university, or a combination of both.
Create a thesis posting that outlines your company or organization and, if applicable, a specific issue you wish to collaborate on.
