Transfer of knowledge between university and work

Abstract

The paper examines Science intern students’ perceptions of knowledge transfer from university to work. Compared with research on learning at work, the field of transfer between university and workplaces is less well explored. Students were briefed on transfer at their workplaces then asked to submit an account of their own experiences of knowledge transfer. The briefing sessions and the accounts were then examined for emergent trends that may shed light on the extent to which students perceived transfer to be occurring. In short, students may recognize some transfer of knowledge and procedures with limited learning or they may extend and develop more general learning into specific learning at work, often providing original, innovative contributions to work practice. Contributions to work were seen as ideal transfer tools or boundary objects.

Keywords:

• activity theory
• boundary object
• internship
• transfer