The impact of internship implementation on the effectiveness of applying acquired knowledge among final-year undergraduate vocational students

Internships represent an important component of higher education, as they enable students to connect theoretical knowledge with its application in a real-world work environment. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of the quality of internship implementation on the effectiveness of applying acquired knowledge among final-year undergraduate vocational students. The research was conducted using a quantitative approach on a sample of 47 students from the Novi Sad Academy of Applied Studies, Department of the School of Business. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics, Cronbach's Alpha coefficient, Pearson's correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression. The results showed that students positively evaluated various aspects of their internships and revealed statistically significant positive correlations among the dimensions examined. The regression model showed that internship organisation and mentoring jointly explained 75.9% of the variance in the effectiveness of applying acquired knowledge. Internship organisation and implementation quality emerged as a statistically significant positive predictor, whereas mentoring did not demonstrate a significant independent contribution. The findings highlight the importance of well-organised internships in developing practical competencies and facilitating the effective integration of students' theoretical and practical knowledge.