It's a worldwide issue. Our youth are not being challenged and are unable to obtain the work that they spend so long in school working to attain.
There has been extra light shed on this issue recently by Sir Michal Wilshaw, the Chief Inspector of School in England. He has been said to recommend that England follows the suit of countries like Germany and Switzerland and offer interns and apprentices the chance to engage with clients, work with important equipment, and be challenged by problems in their positions. Other countries could also stand to follow his advice as well.
Too often at internships and apprenticeships do employers leave the unimportant tasks to students and young workers and do not allow them the opportunity to face problems and accomplish meaningful work.
In fact, close to 20 percent of students were not satisfied with their internship experience. Often they cite lack of meaningful work and no development of their skills as the reasons for such dissatisfaction. This is unfortunate because these programs are designed to prove students with real-world experience and training in order to prepare them for the workforce after they graduate.
If we do not challenge these workers, we are missing out on valuable skills that could make a massive difference.
How do we change?
Well, we follow Sir Michal Wilshaw's advice and challenge our young people.
This is a simple solution. After all, these young people have the education and skills to make some great changes in the workplace: they just need to be given the chance.
At SimplyCast, we have made this one of our core principles. Whenever a new intern, student, or hire walks through the door they are immediately given tasks that are essential to the growth of the company. After all, the best way to learn is to do.
Young workers have been essential to how we operate and they have contributed some of the best work. From manning our online presence to developing new technology, we have trusted interns and co-ops with the company resources and they have risen to the occasion and produced great work. Often, we have hired these students after their school-mandated time with us because we were able to see the caliber of their work by challenging them during their co-op or internship.
So, if we all work together and follow the advice of Sir Michal Wilshaw, we can change the experiences students are receiving at internships and improve the quality of work we produce and the workers we hire.
