Practice and internship – similarities and differences. How is the role of an intern different from that of an apprentice?

It is not uncommon to identify apprentices with interns. It’s just that they are not the same people. So we explain what the internships and internships are similar to and how they differ.

Generally speaking, internships are organized by schools and universities, and internships – by poviat labor offices. But that’s not the only difference.

Worth checking : Current job offers in various industries

Practices

A graduate, looking for a first job right after school or university, will have a better chance on the employment market if he already shows… professional experience. There are times when some employers and entrepreneurs only offer jobs to school and college graduates with first industry experience. These bosses assume that what a graduate will learn from school or university is only theoretical knowledge. Practical knowledge is also required from candidates.

More on the topic : Internship and apprenticeships

Organizing internships by schools and universities is to help in gaining these acquaintances. Years ago, only technical universities and academies, apart from summer summer internships, provided additional student internships in enterprises, institutions and organizations. These were internships organized during the academic year. Currently, not only universities, but also secondary schools – primarily technical and basic vocational schools – are involved in the implementation of internships for their students. General secondary schools also began to focus on apprenticeships for young people. For this purpose, schools and universities establish longer cooperation with workplaces, offices, non-governmental organizations, etc.

Traineeships

Internships are one of the most effective forms of activation of the unemployed. It is precisely internships, next to training, that are also the most popular among unemployed people. Labor offices organize them for registered persons based on the regulations. The basis here is the Act on employment promotion and labor market institutions and the regulation on the detailed conditions of internship by the unemployed.

An unemployed person, referred by PUP for an internship, is to gain practical knowledge and skills in a specific company and profession. The internship does not mean, however, that the trainee will enter into an employment relationship with the employer with whom the internship is working.

Similarities of practice and internship

The acquisition of practical skills is the main goal of both classes. The apprentice or trainee has some theoretical knowledge, acquired in the school classroom or in the lecture hall. In turn, they need to translate theory into practice, so they learn in a company, institution or organization, with which they could later become associated even permanently. Internships, like internships, are organized for a specified period of time and include selected persons. The candidate has the right not to agree to an apprenticeship or internship.

Differences between apprenticeship and apprenticeship

Internships are usually shorter than internships. An internship at university may last, for example, 160 hours during one academic year (80 hours in each of the two semesters), and the internship may last even a year or, in justified cases, even 2 years.

Neither the pupil or the student, nor the employer receive remuneration from the school or university for an internship (or for hiring an apprentice). This means that the apprentice cannot count, at least officially, on this money, and neither can the employer. Often, however, the parties, i.e. the employer and the apprentice, agree that the company will pay the apprentice for participation in the apprenticeship. The rates are also a matter determined individually. In the case of internships, the trainee receives an official remuneration, the so-called internship scholarship. The employer also benefits from this type of arrangement, as he has an additional person to work, but does not pay wages or other benefits. The employment office that referred the unemployed person for an internship covers these expenses.

The apprentice usually has no specific tasks to be performed. Therefore, it does not have a designated scope of duties, and usually there are no predetermined hours of internships, because the internship time is often flexible (the parties agree on it themselves). The apprentice on site, i.e. in the company that conducts these internships, is in a way run by his tutor. On special documents (apprenticeship cards) there are, however, annotations from the employer, along with his stamps and signatures, to confirm the apprentice’s achievements in the company. The person representing the employer (not necessarily the president or the owner of the enterprise) assesses the degree of the student’s implementation of the program in relation to the learning outcomes assumed in the study program.

Next guide : Training for the unemployed and jobseekers

In organizing the internship, the intern is assigned responsibilities, as the intern is treated as if he were an employee. The working time of an unemployed person undergoing an internship may not exceed 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week. The internship program is important here. This is a detailed scope of tasks performed by an unemployed person in the company organizing the internship. The employer, after the trainee finishes the internship, should employ him / her for the period specified in the earlier contract.