Determinants of Effective Internship Program across Vocational Agricultural Schools in Kermanshah Province

Agricultural graduates at secondary level need to be equipped with vocational skills and competencies in order to satisfy employers’ needs. The unemployment rate among agricultural graduates lies on the insufficient experiential learning activities among agricultural instructors. Internship program is an effective strategy to overcome the experiential needs of vocational agricultural schools. This descriptive correlation study sought to investigate the determinants of effective internship program across vocational agricultural schools in Kermanshah. A census of 58 internship instructors and support personnel، participated in the study. A researcher-made questionnaire was designed with acceptable face validity and reliability. Exploratory factor analysis revealed that the following factors are influential in effective internship program respectively: 1) motivational factors، 2) program content، 3) contextual factors، 4) educational factors، and 5) managerial factors. Result of multi – response analysis derived from open – ended questions showed that the following components are critical in making internship programs more effective: 1) salary increase among internship instructors، 2) attitudinal change among interns and support personnel in regards to internship program، and 3) an up – to – date curriculum. The result of this study has practical implications for agricultural vocational policy – makers in Kermanshah.