IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication Mar 2026

Internship Practices in Technical and Professional Communication Programs

Sara B. Parks Stephen F. Austin State University

Abstract

<bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><i>Background:</i></b> Best practices for undergraduate technical and professional communication internships ensure that student experiences align with educational and professional goals. However, it is unclear whether internship programs attempt best practices to fulfill obligations to students, students’ workplaces, and employers. <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><i>Literature review:</i></b> Prior work has called on technical and professional communication on (TPC) faculty to lead internship programs in their academic departments. The scholarship imagines faculty who have access to workplace discourse, who are situated in internship courses or professional advising positions, and direct programs to build relationships, assess, and coordinate across academic-industry boundaries. However, it is unclear how these ideals match current institutional practices. <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><i>Research question:</i></b> What are the current practices of TPC internship programs? <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><i>Methodology:</i></b> A cross-institutional comparative content analysis examined 47 institutions’ TPC internship program and course descriptions and supporting documents that are publicly available on university websites. These were coded for themes related to internship best practices outlined by the literature. <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><i>Results:</i></b> The analysis found: 1. Programs give faculty supervisory titles but retain them and orient internships in academic contexts rather than orient practices toward employers, 2. Programs value their responsibility towards students over employers, and 3. The public-facing documentation does not obligate best practices as idealized in the literature. <bold xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Current TPC internship practices do not fulfill all of the ideals imagined in the literature, but do maintain a humanist student focus.

Journal
IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
Published
2026-03-01
DOI
10.1109/tpc.2026.3658894
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Closed
Topics
discourse analysis professional writing
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (0)

No articles in this index cite this work.

Cites in this index (15)

  1. Bay et al. (2022)
    Remote TPC Internships: Infrastructures for Success
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Dunn et al. (2019)
    Do Interns Know What They Think They Know? Assessing Business Communication Ski…
    Business and Professional Communication Quarterly
  3. Kramer-Simpson (2018)
    Moving From Student to Professional: Industry Mentors and Academic Internship C…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  4. Bay (2017)
    Training Technical and Professional Communication Educators for Online Internsh…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  5. Jones (2016)
    The Technical Communicator as Advocate
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Show all 15 →
  1. Bourelle (2014)
    New Perspectives on the Technical Communication Internship: Professionalism in …
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Brent (2012)
    Crossing Boundaries: Co-op Students Relearning to Write
    College Composition and Communication
  3. Bourelle (2012)
    Bridging the Gap between the Technical Communication Classroom and the Internsh…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  4. Savage et al. (2010)
    Technical Communication Internship Requirements in the Academic Economy: How We…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Bay (2006)
    Preparing Undergraduates for Careers: An Argument for the Internship Practicum
    College English
  6. Amant (2003)
    Expanding Internships to Enhance Academic-Industry Relations: A Perspective in …
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  7. Tovey (2001)
    Building Connections between Industry and University: Implementing an Internshi…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  8. Savage (1997)
    Doing Unto Others through Technical Communication Internship Programs
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  9. LITTLE (1993)
    The Technical Communication Internship
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  10. Wyld (1978)
    Practical Professional Training through Internships
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
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