- Editor: Shahd Atef
Students across a range of majors at The American of Cairo (AUC) are enrolled in internship courses as part of their graduation requirements.
The goal of these courses is to provide them with real-world experience, sharpen their skills, and ease the leap from campus to career.
Sophia Khalifa, internship officer at the Career Centre, believes that internships within the academic curricula provide hands-on experience that bridge the gap between theoretical learning and real-world application.
“Internships help students develop industry specific skills, gain insight into workplace dynamics, and build professional networks, which are essential for securing full-time employment after graduation,” Khalifa told The Caravan.
Youssef Fathalla, a Construction Engineering senior who completed his internship at Palm Hills Developments, finds the internship program useful, as it feeds back into his academic studies.
“It helped me learn more about what is expected of me after graduation, and I was able to apply what I learned throughout my internship in my engineering courses at AUC,” he said.
However, some students find navigating their internship experiences challenging. Securing a meaningful placement can be difficult due to limited opportunities in certain fields or a lack of industry connections, they say.
“One of the biggest struggles was finding an internship that aligned with my interests and actually allowed me to learn,” said Taya El Sewedy, a Multimedia Communication and Journalism (MMCJ) senior.
“Many organizations just want interns for the extra help, not to mentor or teach.”
Other students criticized the course’s grading system.
“We’re being assessed on reports and reflections, but no one from AUC ever came to evaluate my work or even contacted my supervisor,” said Zeina Mostafa, a Business Marketing senior.
Although some majors list their internship classes as a zero credit unpaid course, others list it as 1-credit pass/fail or even a 3-credit course, meaning it contributes to the tuition fees in the same way as a regular class.
Several students have voiced concerns about being charged to complete their own work experience outside the classroom.
“It doesn’t make sense to me that we have to pay to register for an internship course where we’re the ones doing the work,” said Mohamed Ragab, a Petroleum Engineering senior.
“Instead of being compensated for our effort, we’re actually charged tuition fees just to get course credit for it.”
In response to these criticisms, Khalifa emphasized that the internship course is not just about the work experience itself, but about structured learning and professional development.
“The tuition fees cover the academic monitoring of the internship. Students aren’t just working, they’re reflecting on their experiences, documenting their learning, and receiving feedback from faculty supervisors,” she said.
She added that the academic component of setting goals, evaluating outcomes, and connecting experience to coursework, is what differentiates it from unpaid internships.
Rasha Allam, chair of the Journalism and Mass Communication Department (JRMC), explained that her department’s internship course is vital for providing students with firsthand experience of a professional media job.
“Many of our courses are practical courses, and we have courses that are advanced and equipped and give you a sense of what the media job market is like. However, the internship course specifically, puts you in an actual media organization where you have to adapt to real work and perform professionally in order to gain the correct experience for the future,” she said.
Depending on the internship, JRMC students are meant to develop skills such as multimedia production, advertising skills, strategic communication, and journalism experience.
Allam also explained that it encourages students to build industry connections and understand the job market.
“It allows students to get employed in the companies that they had interned at once they graduate,” said Allam.
In order to stay on top of developments in the media industry and make sure students are ready for the demands of the job market, Allam noted that faculty members are constantly working to improve these courses.
“AUC’s [Journalism and Mass Communication] department has an agreement with top companies in the market, whether its radio, news networks, advertising, television, or digital platforms.”
MMCJ alumna Amina Hussein, completed her internship course at Valu, a financial technology company, as a financial analyst intern.
“It helped me realize what I wanted to pursue after graduation,” she said. “I was able to prove myself and build strong relationships with the team.”
Shortly after completing her internship, Valu offered her a full time position. Hussein believes that without the internship course, she wouldn’t have had the same exposure or opportunity.
Students from other majors echoed Hussein’s sentiments, but Ragab still feels the point is not clear.
“I understand the need to reflect and write reports,” he said of the supervisory role for which students pay for the course. “But at the end of the day, the main thing we did was work outside of AUC. It felt like double the work, working for companies and still paying university fees.”
