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3IBL2, HES - University of Applied Sciences
Research Skills and Techniques
The best communication tools to reach
students
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TABLE OF CONTENT
1. INTRODUCTION. 2-3
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE ORGANISATION.. 3-4
3. COMMUNICATION (TOOLS)....................... 4-8
4. FIELD RESEARCH..
4.1RESEARCH METHOLOGY.........................................................................................................................
4.2RESEARCH RESULTS ...............................................................................................................................
5. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS .....................................................................................
6. APPENDIXES ................................................................................................................................
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1. IntroductionNowadays internships are immense important for students to upgrade their Curriculum vitae, to grow
professionally and having the possibility that the internship turns into a permanent position. Also
businesses internships are the key in todays economy, companies are relying increasingly on interns to
shore up the spaces where full-time jobs have been cut.12
The HES, School of Economics and Business,
is the business school of the Hogeschool van Amsterdam. It is one of the largest institutes for higher
professional education in The Netherlands with around 10,000 students. During my research it was
found that for students going on an internship it is of highly importance that they are well informed to
find the appropriate internship. Therefore, communication with the Placement office international at
the HES and the students is mainly important. Often this communication process lacks clarity,
completeness and appropriateness of level of detail. Failures to communicate are a complex issue with
multiple causes tend to lead to unnecessary problems such as confusion, frustration and is time
consuming (see research results). Miscommunication or a lack of communication is affecting students'
capacities for finding a placement. Therefore, the aim of this research is to improve the communication
between the International career centre of the HES and its students regarding internships by using the
most effective communication tools.
The main question to be answered is:
Which communication tools should the Placement office international use to improve communication
with students regarding internships?
In order to answer the main question, sub questions were set up:
How is the communication structure and what communication tools are currently used at theinternational department?
What are the current problems and possible solutions according to studentsand personnel
What communication tools are the most frequently used by students? What information regarding the internship do students want to know and through which
communication tool do they prefer to be provided of this information?
Which social media communication tools are mainly used by the international office andstudents?
1http://edition.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/worklife/04/14/cb.why.internships.important/index.html
2http://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/college-internships
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_schoolhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogeschool_van_Amsterdamhttp://edition.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/worklife/04/14/cb.why.internships.important/index.htmlhttp://edition.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/worklife/04/14/cb.why.internships.important/index.htmlhttp://edition.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/worklife/04/14/cb.why.internships.important/index.htmlhttp://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/college-internshipshttp://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/college-internshipshttp://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/college-internshipshttp://www.collegeview.com/articles/article/college-internshipshttp://edition.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/worklife/04/14/cb.why.internships.important/index.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogeschool_van_Amsterdamhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_school7/30/2019 Communication inside a university
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2. Description of the organization The HES School of Economics and Business is the business school of the Hogeschool van Amsterdam(HvA) established in 1867 and is one of the largest institutes for higher education in the Netherlands. It
is situated in Amsterdam. The HES employs around 600 and has productive contacts with the business
world. HvA offers the HvA students its knowledge and tries to continuously renew and expand that
knowledge via lectures and knowledge platforms in the Netherlands and abroad. HVA helps students
grow into independent professionals by internships and assigning research projects. The HVA also has a
close relationship with the University of Amsterdam which creates benefits in the areas of education
and research and this close collaboration increases efficiency through knowledge exchange.
Specially designed international programmes taught in English attract yearly students from all over
Europe, USA, Canada, Mexico, Africa, Australia and Asia to complete their international business studies.All programmes are designed to meet the Dutch standard in Higher Professional Education (HBO). The
School of Economics and Business is recognized by the HBO Council and the Minister of Education of the
Netherlands, and is also recognised by a wide variety of international partners.3
International placement office
Like the HES, each of the seven schools of the HvA has an International Office. The International Office
helps incoming international students to plan their stay in the Netherlands as well as outgoing students
to plan their exchange or abroad. Before the research I was found that within the HES there are severalinternational departments: International department, International office, bureau stage en afstuderen
and the international placement office. It was quite complicated and confusing to identify the difference
and purposes of those departments, and after the interviews with the students it was found that they
also have problems to know where to go with questions about their internship. On internet it was found
that the international office is for exchange students. International offices attendants can answer
students questions about living in the Netherlands and studying at the HvA/HES but they also arrange
paper work between students and the international institutions. However, during the research I found
out that this department is not responsible for internships.4
Through the interviews (see research) it became clear that the International placement office is thedepartment that guides students from international studies at the HES to find an international
internship. It is the students task to find a placement but the International placement attendants are
there to help students with questions, to give advice, arrange the necessary paperwork and to evaluate
internships reports.
3http://www.international.hva.nl/schools/schools/school-economics-and-management
4http://www.international.hva.nl/study/international-offices
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_schoolhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogeschool_van_Amsterdamhttp://www.international.hva.nl/schools/schools/school-economics-and-managementhttp://www.international.hva.nl/schools/schools/school-economics-and-managementhttp://www.international.hva.nl/schools/schools/school-economics-and-managementhttp://www.international.hva.nl/study/international-officeshttp://www.international.hva.nl/study/international-officeshttp://www.international.hva.nl/study/international-officeshttp://www.international.hva.nl/study/international-officeshttp://www.international.hva.nl/schools/schools/school-economics-and-managementhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogeschool_van_Amsterdamhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_school7/30/2019 Communication inside a university
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3. Communication(tools) I did a desk research on communication and communicant tools to have a better understanding of the
importance of good communication and to know which communication tools are available and which
are adequate to reach students. Communication can be divided in external communication and internal
communication. Internal communication involves communication that exists within a company which
includes: communication between employees, communication between management and
communication between management and its employees, whereas, external communication involves
communication from the company to the outside. It is about exchanging information and messages
between an organization and other organizations, groups, or individuals outside its formal structure.
This can be communication between an organization and customers, suppliers, channel partners, media,government, general public.
5
Communication between the International office and the students is considered as external
communication. However, I chose to focus on both internal and external communication because I
found information about internal communication relevant to my research as well since you can see the
International office as the management informing its employees (students) about what tasks they need
to do and to provide the students with recommendations and feedback.
The importance of good communication
In today's business environment, corporate identity and corporate communications, when viewed and
managed from a strategic perspective, can provide many organizations with a distinct competitive
advantage (Citation: John M.T. Balmer, Edmund R. Gray, (2000) "Corporate identity and corporate
communications: creating a competitive advantage",). Profit organizations are just as, if not more
committed than non-profit organizations, to ensuring that the mission and objectives set forth are
carried out. However, communication is not what it used to be, the new global economic environment,
the far-reaching changes in the mass media and the development of technology, internet and social
media are just some of the factors directly affecting communication. Since students are quick adapting
to the fast growing environment and especially the fast growing internet technology, programs and
social media, it is important for the International placement office to stay up-to-dated to reach studentsin the most effective and efficient way. 6
5http://tutor2u.net/business/gcse/people_communication_introduction.htm
6http://issuu.com/revistalatinadecomunicacion/docs/rlcs_art890en
http://tutor2u.net/business/gcse/people_communication_introduction.htmhttp://tutor2u.net/business/gcse/people_communication_introduction.htmhttp://tutor2u.net/business/gcse/people_communication_introduction.htmhttp://issuu.com/revistalatinadecomunicacion/docs/rlcs_art890enhttp://issuu.com/revistalatinadecomunicacion/docs/rlcs_art890enhttp://issuu.com/revistalatinadecomunicacion/docs/rlcs_art890enhttp://issuu.com/revistalatinadecomunicacion/docs/rlcs_art890enhttp://tutor2u.net/business/gcse/people_communication_introduction.htm7/30/2019 Communication inside a university
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The five most efficient and effective communication tools to reach students and its advantages and
disadvantages
1. Face to face communication
Face to face communication is the most intense and highest quality way of communicating as it allowsyou to see a persons body language, expression, tone of voice and observe his/her reactions. The main
benefit is that in this way you can listen carefully to the other person and you have immediate
interaction. This communication tool is of high importance for the International placement office since it
is fundamental to know the students wishes, about where they would like to do their internship and
what kind of internship they are looking for. It is important to use the face to face tool because not one
students situation is the same as another students situation and in this way the office attendant can
equip the student with the adequate information and recommendations. However, it takes a lot of time
and effort to arrange an appointment, transport time and the actual time you spend together. At the
same time, it compensates because students will have a lot of questions and during a face to face
conversation, which is direct interaction, students and International placement office attendants getdirect answers on all the questions. Imagine doing all this by email, sending many questions back and
forward to understand the students situation, while you could do it in a ten-minute conversation.
2. E-mail
Email is a popular communication tool, which is commonly used among students to reach teachers or
HES management, because it is fast, cheap and easy to explain yourself in written words (see research).
For the International placement office this could and is currently used to answer quick, simple questions
that students have, but also to inform students about general information such as information sessions.
However, the International placement office should take care with this communication tool as it doesnot eliminate the need for face to face communication, especially for sensitive subjects, performance
reviews or bad news. Information such as news about approval or non-approval on a students
placement company should be discussed face to face, as well as internship reports that are not sufficient
graded because both situations need further explanation. An in-person meeting or a telephone or video
conference (for example via Skype when students are abroad) will allow the kind of immediate
interaction that prevents a problem from becoming even more serious and emotionally charged.7
3. Information session
An Information Session could be used in the form of a presentation given by an attendant of theInternational placement office to provide students with details about the various options for internships,
the requirements for the placement companies and support offered by the HES. The benefits of an
7
http://rps.hva.nl:2488/docview/231414698/fulltextPDF/135E818BBEC21F57E0D/26?accountid=130632
http://rps.hva.nl:2488/docview/231414698/fulltextPDF/135E818BBEC21F57E0D/26?accountid=130632http://rps.hva.nl:2488/docview/231414698/fulltextPDF/135E818BBEC21F57E0D/26?accountid=130632http://rps.hva.nl:2488/docview/231414698/fulltextPDF/135E818BBEC21F57E0D/26?accountid=1306327/30/2019 Communication inside a university
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Information Session are varied
One of the advantages of information sessions is that it saves time. That may be hard to believe in a
culture where people have come to think of meetings as a waste of time. An effective meeting or
information session, however, is just the opposite. Just imagine how long it would take to get a group of,
say, 30 students to inform about general information they need to know for their internship and resolve
conflict or confusion if you had to approach each one separately. As wonderful as email is, it isn't a
substitute for face-time when face-time is needed.8
More benefits of an information session:
Alignment: Rather than students spending hours reading through email chains and finding information
on intranet and clarifying meaning, information sessions and meetings are often the most effective
means to ensure alignment.
Socializing:The briefsocializingbefore or after the defined meeting or information session time can be
an important factor in student engagement: students can share their experience and maybe even give
each other advice.
Awareness: Issues that are not formally relayed in written communications have a tendency be
uncovered during meetings/information sessions. The back-and-forth dialogue may create awareness to
risks and issues otherwise not defined. For example the International placement attendant can notice
certain information that students want to know, or problems students run into during their search.
Development: Professional development often occurs in meetings and information sessions, as students
are challenged to speak up to the presenter and class mates to develop communication skills, character
and quick thinking.
Direct interaction: Students have the possibility to ask questions, these question could be helpful for
other students as well, which decrease the questions via email to the attendant after worth. 9
A disadvantage of information session or meeting is that there is a possibility of information overload in
a meeting/information session if there are items discussed that students already read on intranet, in the
internship manual or heard by fellow students. Another problem is unnecessary repetition of old
information from previous meetings/information sessions which makes meetings pointless.
The nice thing about a meeting/information session is that every member sees the person they are
interacting with. However, not every student is participative in meetings/information sessions because
they think it is a waste of time and they might prefer information online so they can decide when they
have time to read it and can read it back whenever they need to know something or when they forgot
certain points.10
8http://www.ehow.com/list_6531505_benefits-effective-meetings.html
9http://modernservantleader.com/servant-leadership/5-tips-for-great-meetings-and-the-hidden-benefits/
10http://www.exforsys.com/career-center/meeting-management/disadvantages-of-meetings.html
http://www.ehow.com/list_6531505_benefits-effective-meetings.htmlhttp://www.ehow.com/list_6531505_benefits-effective-meetings.htmlhttp://www.ehow.com/list_6531505_benefits-effective-meetings.htmlhttp://modernservantleader.com/servant-leadership/5-tips-for-great-meetings-and-the-hidden-benefits/http://modernservantleader.com/servant-leadership/5-tips-for-great-meetings-and-the-hidden-benefits/http://modernservantleader.com/servant-leadership/5-tips-for-great-meetings-and-the-hidden-benefits/http://www.exforsys.com/career-center/meeting-management/disadvantages-of-meetings.htmlhttp://www.exforsys.com/career-center/meeting-management/disadvantages-of-meetings.htmlhttp://www.exforsys.com/career-center/meeting-management/disadvantages-of-meetings.htmlhttp://www.exforsys.com/career-center/meeting-management/disadvantages-of-meetings.htmlhttp://modernservantleader.com/servant-leadership/5-tips-for-great-meetings-and-the-hidden-benefits/http://www.ehow.com/list_6531505_benefits-effective-meetings.html7/30/2019 Communication inside a university
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4. Online communication tools
The last years the need for cheap, easy, quick and flexible communication tools has grown, as more
students work from distant or different locations. The types of experiences made possible by online
communication tools give not only professionals benefits but it is also very useful for students. It givesstudents opportunities to learn in non-traditional ways. Debate, dialog, demonstration, conversation,
and other means for exploring the many sides of a topic, such as internship, are all natural ways to
interact using online tools.
Online communication tools may be direct interaction or not; based in text, audio or video; and enable
one-to-one, one-to-many or many-to-many communications. Many may be used either from a
computer or an Internet-enabled mobile phone, and some can be used from almost any mobile phone.11
Using online tools to facilitate writing, collaboration, and discussion requires attention to the planning
and structure of these activities in order for them to be successful. In addition, it is important to match
the proper tool to these online activities. It is important that the International placement officeidentifies the necessary information students need and what online communication tool suits the best
to that certain information.
There are two online communication tools; asynchronous tools and synchronous tools. Asynchronous
tools are the ones with no direct interaction, if a post is read and replied later, such as the general
information the International placement department already has posted for students on Intranet. The
most used asynchronous tool is e-mail, which I already mentioned before but others are bulletin boards,
newsgroups, blogs and wikis. It can support several strategies such as; cooperative learning, shared
tasks, peer review and comment, student led discussions and inquiry/problem based learning through
using online discussion tools.
Synchronous tools are tools that have direct interaction with one and other. It has become very popular
over the past six years. For students to interact with faculty, chat tools are common used. It can be
helpful to answer fast the questions students have, and it is easier for students to approach an
International placement attendant through a chat because of the direct interaction. The tools can be
created for existing groups or for example for classes. Chat forums can also be set up for students to be
able to ask other students for online help or assistant.
The disadvantages for these online tools are that it requires time for both students and employees of
the International placement office to get used to the different systems. Besides, it needs to be kept up-
11
http://wp.nmc.org/horizon-k12-2009/chapters/online-communication-tools/
http://wp.nmc.org/horizon-k12-2009/chapters/online-communication-tools/http://wp.nmc.org/horizon-k12-2009/chapters/online-communication-tools/http://wp.nmc.org/horizon-k12-2009/chapters/online-communication-tools/7/30/2019 Communication inside a university
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to-dated at all times since the internet is a fast changing environment.12
5. Social media
Social media is the act of creating and posting content in the following environments; online, mobile orvirtual. The words that best describes social media are; connecting, interacting, speaking, listening,
collaborating, building, information sharing and learning. The success behind social media is creating
easily a giant network with those that you can identify as friends or followers and the possibility of the
content or information you want to share, thereby making it the act of being social online. Social media
is also a medium, a communication tool; it is very possible to foster an exchange of information a give
and take. The ease and speed with which social media enables individuals to create and distribute
content make it one of the most powerful mediums of our time.
Social media has substantially changed the way organizations, communities, and individuals
communicate it is no longer only the process in which we consume but up and down communication.The International department could use this communication tool such as: Twitter, Facebook, Hyves to
post the newest updates regarding internships, which could include country information, for example if
a country gets negative travel advice, or when a country is discouraged due to political issues or high
unemployment rates. As well it could be used for student interaction where students can find each
other to share experience or give each other advice. The newest vacancies could be posted on the social
media pages of the International placement office as well, in this way students could find immediately
the newest vacancies. A specific Facebook communication tool that I would like to mention is
BranchOut. BranchOut is a Facebook application designed for finding jobs, networking professionally,
and recruiting employees. In this way companies can find the HES and post available vacancies on the
HES Facebook page.
The disadvantage of social media are that it is time consuming since it needs to stay up-dated to
maintain your network and it takes a while to create a big network and awareness among students
about the possibilities social media could have for professional objectives. Moreover, not all students
might be positive about connecting through social media with their institute, worrying about their
privacy.13
Quality has its price. There are benefits and costs to all these communication tools. It is important to
weight carefully both the benefit and the cost as you plan how you will employ all the available
communication tools. Effective communication results in shared understanding of whats most
important.
12http://www.cites.illinois.edu/reference/pedagogy/communication/communication4.html
13Book: Perspectives on Social Media Marketing by B. Bonin Bough and Stephanie Agresta (2011)
ISBN:9781435456525
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebookhttp://www.cites.illinois.edu/reference/pedagogy/communication/communication4.htmlhttp://www.cites.illinois.edu/reference/pedagogy/communication/communication4.htmlhttp://www.cites.illinois.edu/reference/pedagogy/communication/communication4.htmlhttp://rps.hva.nl:2061/SearchResults.aspx?qdom=author&scol=%7ball%7d&qstr=B.%20Bonin%20Boughhttp://rps.hva.nl:2061/SearchResults.aspx?qdom=author&scol=%7ball%7d&qstr=Stephanie%20Agrestahttp://rps.hva.nl:2061/SearchResults.aspx?qdom=author&scol=%7ball%7d&qstr=Stephanie%20Agrestahttp://rps.hva.nl:2061/SearchResults.aspx?qdom=author&scol=%7ball%7d&qstr=B.%20Bonin%20Boughhttp://www.cites.illinois.edu/reference/pedagogy/communication/communication4.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facebook7/30/2019 Communication inside a university
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Book; Becoming a Resonant Leader by Goleman and Boyatzis (2008, p. 138) provide six social qualities
that exist within communication and what communication tool best can be used in several situations:
The Goleman and Boyatzis Social Qualities Imperatives With Best Communication Channel
1. Empathy Knowing what motivates otherpeople, even those from
different backgrounds and
having sensitivity to others
needs.
So for the International
placement office to know whatmotivates students to search
for an internship in a certain
country or area, and to find out
their needs, it should use face
to face communication.
Use a Face-to-Face Channel.
2. Atonement Listening attentively, thinkingabout how others might feel,
and being attuned with the
moods of others.
To get a clear picture of the
situation where the students
are in and to find their fears,
doubts or uncertainties, the
International placement should
use face to face
communication.
Use a Face-to-Face Channel
3. Organizationalawareness
Appreciating the culture and
values of the department or
organization and understanding
the social networks.
For the student to understand
the HES culture, values and
rules and especially the
projects or improvements that
Use newsletters, flyers, and
emails
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the International placement
department currently is
working on, the International
placement office should use
newsletters or emails. This is
also a good way to inform the
students about the new social
networks the department is
using.
4. Influence Having the ability to persuadeothers by engaging them in
discussions and appealing to
their self-interests or gaining
the support of key people
For the International placement
office to get the students to
interact directly and to ask
questions which answers on it
might be interesting for other
students as well, as well as
sharing their experience. The
International placement office
should use information
sessions.
Use Small Groups,
Meetings/information sessions
and the Telephone.
5. Developing others Investing time and energy incoaching, mentoring, and
developing the skills of others
and providing feedback that is
helpful to their professional
development.
For the International
department it is important to
use face to face communication
to give students
recommendations on the
progress of the search for an
internship and to provide
feedback after their internship
on their internship report for
Use a Face-to-Face Channel.
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professional development.
6. Inspiration Articulating a compellingvision to build group pride,
foster a positive emotional
tone, bringing out the best in
people, soliciting input from
everyone on the team,
supporting all team members,
and encouraging cooperation.
To ensure that the mission and
objectives set forth are carried
out by the students in an
effective and efficient way and
to ensure encouraging
cooperation of the
International placement office,
the International placement
office should use all above
mentioned channels to reach
students.
Use all channels.
14
14Book; Becoming a Resonant Leader by Goleman and Boyatzis (2008, p. 138)
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4 Field research
4.1 Research methodology
In order to answer the secondary questions and to solve the research problem, there is a general
strategy needed with an overall structure for the procedures. There has to be a description of how the
information is conducted, and which methods to use.
Firstly, there had to be thought of a problem. Since I am searching for an internship placement for next
semester myself, I found that we were not informed well about our placement what left me with a lot of
questions and insecurities. Therefore, I conducted the research problem to find out which
communication tools the Placement office international could use or improve the communication with
the students regarding internships.
Secondly, through desk research secondary data is collected about internal and external communication
and data about communication tools. A lot of questions arose, and out of this I made the sub questions.
To answer the secondary questions, qualitative and quantitative research is used. Qualitative research is
conducted at the HES through two interviews: The first one with Mr Bos, the Interim Placement
Coordinator for students of international studies at the HES; and another interview with Mr van
Louvezijn the internship coordinator for Dutch studies at the HES. Although the research is about the
communication tools to reach the students of the international studies at the HES regarding internship, I
have chosen to interview the coordinator of the Dutch studies as well to see how they reach students
and to find out if their approach is effective. Both interviews were meant to get more depth insight in
the communication system of the internship offices and to find out what communication tools are used,
but also to find out their opinion about the current system and communication tools, if they are satisfied
with the results, and if not, what they suggest to improve and which communication tools they think
would be the most effective ones.
Furthermore, I conducted a questionaire for students of the international studies at the HES who are
supposed to start their internship next school year, to find out their opinion about the way that theinternship department provide them of information and also to find out what communication tools they
currently use the most and why they choose for those communication tools. However, during the
interviews with the Placement coordinators for the international studies and the Dutch studies, it was
found that students from the International studies have not or barely been informed about their
internship yet because of reorganisation. Therefore, after I had interviewed 25 students, I have chosen
to not continue the quantitative research, which was nevertheless very difficult to get 100 students of
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an international study at the HES to fill in the questionaire that I had conducted. In addition, I conducted
a focus group of students because I found out that indepth interviews with a focus group would give me
more accurate information on what communication tools they use the most and why they chose for
those communication tools. Apart from that, I wanted to know what information is important for
students to receive regarding their internship to find out in this way which communication tools would
be the most appropiate tool for that specific requiered information.
4.2 Research Results
Qualitative research: the Interviews
In the research I wanted to analyse the communication system of the placement office for international
students e.g.: what communication tools they currently use to reach students, how often, the reason
why they chose those tools and when they start informing students. The same I wanted to know from
the placement office for the Dutch studies to compare it with the placement office for international
students and maybe even find suggestions on how to improve communication at the placement office
for international students through the experience of the placement office of the Dutch studies.
I organized two meetings to interview both departments. First I met with Mr Bos, the Interim Placement
coordinator for students of international studies at the HES and secondly I met with the placement
coordinator for Dutch studies, Mr van Leuvezijn. While I was trying to arrange a meeting with the right
person for my research it was confusing what the right desk/department was to contact: International
department, international office, bureau stage en afstuderen, or International Placement office.
Therefore, I added an extra question to my questionnaire to start with. For the questionnaire and the
complete outcome of both interviews, please see Appendix I.
Conclusion of both interviews
According to Mr Louvezijn, there is a good communication between Bureau stage en afstuderen and its
students of Dutch studies through: face to face communication, intranet, handed out manuals and the
most commonly used communication tool, email. In contrast there is only little communication between
the International Placement office and its students, the little communication that took place was
through email and the available internship manual had been posted on Intranet. This means that email
and intranet are their currently used communication tools and according to Mr Bos, this is not sufficient
enough, that is why students will be informed soon through an information session about theirinternship. In the near future they will unite with Bureau stage en afstuderen and the international
office to become: the International Career Centre. That would be a good opportunity for the Placement
office to follow the same communication structure as Bureau stages en afstuderen is already using right
now. Mr Bos thinks that email is the most common used communication tool by students but also within
their own department. Other communication tools that Mr Bos thinks that could be used to reach
students within the International Career Centre (ICC) will be: face to face through information sessions
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and internship fairs at the HES. Those two communication tools are important according to Mr Bos since
many students just do not read the manual and in this way the students can directly ask questions which
might be interesting for other students to hear as well. The ICC will keep on using email as their most
important communication tool because he thinks email will stay one of the most important
communication tools in professional life for a long time: it is a quick, efficient and cheap way of
communication. Moreover, the ICC does not want to stay behind in the modern society and therefore
will start using blogs and social media to reach students. Both Placement Coordinators believe it will be
a good idea to communicate with students through social media because it is an immense popular
communication tool among students.
The Quantitative research: questionnaire with students
I conducted a questionnaire to find out which communication tools students at the HES use the most in
their professional career, if they think the placement office is using the right communication tools and
what they would suggest to be the best communication tool to reach students.
The outcomes on this questionnaire showed, as Mr Bos already mentioned, that there have been little
communication with students as only a few students said they received information regarding their
internship and when I asked them to describe the communication between them and the placement
office, all surveyed students answered with: very bad. Through the focus group I want to find out what
information they received and what information the students would like to receive. Besides, I would like
to know through what communication tool they have been informed since almost all of the students
answered that the placement office used the right communication tool. Interesting was that all of the
students mentioned that email is their most frequently used communication tool in their professional
career. The HES account is frequently used, almost all of the questioned students said they check their
HES email account daily, and another quite significant part of the students receive their HES email
directly on their mobile phone and only a few of the students read their email on the HES account once
a week. Face to face also seemed highly valued among students: when I asked through which
communication tools students preferred to be informed about their internship, almost half of the
students answered that they wanted to be informed through email. Slightly less students preferred to
be informed face to face. The answers on the questionnaire can be found in frequency tables in
Appendix III.
During the quantitative research I found out that the most important information I needed was not to
be found in the answers on the questionnaire questions but a focus group would be necessary. I wanted
to find out which communication tool they use the most and especially WHY they choose this tool. You
could use several different kinds of communication tools for different types of information you want to
pass on. Therefore, it is important to find out what specific information students need and want to know
to be able to start their search for an internship, to find out which communication tools it requires. For
this reason I chose to conduct a focus group of 9 students of an international study at the HES.
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The Qualitative research: Focus group of nine IBL students (age 21-25 years)
After I interviewed this focus group, some generally found results became clear. First of all, it could be
concluded that the overall communication between the Placement office and the students is not as it
ought to be. Secondly, students prefer a combination of communication tools, but which ones that
depends on the kind of information it concerns. However, they prefer the basic communication tools
HES is working with already, because students are familiar with the system. They also think it will not be
a good idea to use too many communication tools, neither social media, to prevent the communication
system from becoming to unclear and confusing.
I have chosen for a focus group to create interaction between the students to gather as much
information as possible in that way. In order to easily explain all the results thoroughly of the focus
group, every question is discussed shortly in Appendix IV. The conclusion of the focus group outcome
will be explained in the following paragraph.
All students, except for one, are supposed to start their internship the next semester, in September
2012. Two out of nine students said they had been informed, but they were a little hesitant with their
answer so I asked why. They explained the reason was because they only received some information:
one student found the internship manual on Intranet by himself; and the other student had been to the
company fair at the HES. The manual that the one student had found was on the Intranet. The other
students received an email from Ms. Hazelhof that there was a company fair and on that fair one of the
students received face to face information. Little shocking was the fact that none of the questioned
students knew where to go for questions about their internship or where to find information. None of
the students know who their internship coordinator is, while in three months their internship should be
arranged and papers should be signed, according to Mr Bos. The students were very disappointed as
well about this fact. One student even thought that the desk at the international office on the fourth
floor would be the place where he would go if they have questions, the same office where they went for
questions about their exchange.
The HVA email is found to be used most frequently. When the students have questions regarding their
internship the students explained that they would use email first for main questions such as finding out
about the requirements her placement company should meet according to the guidelines of the HES.
However, as soon as there are several options with different companies they prefer to make an
appointment with the placement coordinator to discuss it.
The students mentioned: E-mail, social media, Intranet, internship manual, information lectures in class
and face to face appointment with the internship department as tools that would be helpful to provide
them of information. It depends on the kind of information to decide what communication tool would
be the best tool. Nevertheless, email and face to face meetings with the placement coordinator would
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work the best for the questioned students.
What seemed to be the most important information students would like to know, is what requirements
companies must meet to be approved as a valid internship by the HES or what positions students could
occupy, this would make searching for an internship a lot easier. They think the best communication
tool for this would be in a document on Intranet or handed out in a manual. The students agreed that it
would be the best if they would be informed first about the basic information such as: who their
placement coordinator is; where the office of the placement coordinator is; and how to reach him, but
also; before what date their internship should be arranged at least, and the exact duration of an
internship. All students agreed that this basic information should be given first and the best
communication tool for that, according to the students, would be face to face, by an information session
in class for example. As the students already mentioned, for more detailed information that applies to
their personal situation, they prefer a face to face meeting with the placement coordinator.
Students chose for an information session in class because in this way there is direct interaction and
they are able to get answers to their questions directly. This is obviously not necessary to do this one by
one since the basic information students need to know is similar for all students and the answers to the
questions students have, might be interesting to know for others as well. The reason for choosing the
Intranet or a manual as a communication tool for the requirements and positions students may choose
to occupy, is that they can read it whenever they want and both are good ways to pass on detailed
information. They chose for a face to face meeting with their placement coordinator to be the right
communication tool at the moment they would have questions about the companies they have found,
because they will need specific information at that moment on their own personal situation and they
prefer direct interaction over email. They chose email as the appropriate tool for the moments they will
have small or a few questions, because making a face to face appointment would take too much time.
Although the students think social media is so important nowadays and although they use it a lot and
daily, they still think it would not be the right communication tool to communicate with students
regarding internships. They prefer the communication tools mentioned before which are the best know
communication tools at the HES in general, because they are afraid that if too many different
communication tools are adapted, students will lose overview of where to find what information.
All the answers of the focus group questions answered the sub questions and give a good indication of
what the students expect of the placement office, what information they need and which
communication tool they prefer, most use and why they choose these. The Recommendations and the
answer to the main question will be given in the next chapter.
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5 Conclusion and recommendations
Which communication tools should the Placement office international use to improve communication
with students regarding internships?
At the beginning of the research it became clear that the communication between the International
placement office and the students is very weak, students are not informed about the internship
procedure and do not know where to go for their questions or doubts. The current communication tools
used in the International offices is email, intranet and the International office planned to provide
students with an information session soon. Email is the most commonly used communication tool
among students because it is fast, cheap and easy to explain yourself in written words. Therefore, it is
recommended to use email as the main communication tool to reach students and as a communication
tool for students to reach the International office attendants in case students have doubts or questions.
First of all, it is important to introduce students to the International Placement office and equip the
students with the basic information regarding internships. An Information Session could be used in the
form of a presentation given by an attendant of the International placement office to provide students
with details about the various options for internships, the requirements for the placement companies
and support offered by the HES. In this way the basic information reaches a large audience in once and
students are able to ask questions after or during an information session, which might be interesting for
other students as well. Besides, information sessions are often the most effective means to ensure
alignment, rather than students spending a lot of time reading through the manual, emails or spending
time on figuring out the available information on intranet. The information session is good opportunity
to hand out a hard copy of the placement manual, so that students could read back information that is
discussed during the session at any time. During the information session the attendant should explain
the students that several vacancies are to be found on the intranet but as well the office hours in which
students can make an appointment with their coordinator in case they have questions or when they
would like to arrange the paperwork for their placement etc. This personal face to face meeting should
not be eliminated since it is the most intense and highest quality way of communicating and it allows
the attendant to picture perfectly the students situation and wishes regarding their internship and
provide the student with direct support and advice.
Although students are adapting to the fast changing environment and the new way of communicating
via internet and social media, they prefer to keep the basic communication tools instead of too many
new communication tools. Therefore, students are not enthusiastic about the International placement
office using social media. Due to the fact that the International placement office is reorganizing and in
the near future it will unite with Bureau stage en afstuderen and the international office to become: the
International Career Centre, it is recommended to implement the above mentioned basic
communication tools to create first a clear and simple communication basis until the communication
structure is smooth and improved before starting to explore and use social media.
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I believe that the implementations of the above mentioned recommendations and the use of the above
mentioned communication tools will enable the International placement office to improve the
communication with students regarding internships. Through the use of effective communication and
communication tools, particularly, understanding the far-reaching changes in communication through
development of technology, internet and social media, and knowing which communication tools
students use the most and prefer for school issues, the International placement office will be able to
provide students of good support during their search for an internship.
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