JINC, a Dutch charity that offers secondary school children in the Netherlands, insight into jobs with the “Flash Internship” programme.
The project follows a six-step structure to ensure each child gets the most out their work experience period.
The first step involves scheduling a date for an internship between JINC and the participating school. When this is established, the JINC project team contact suitable companies and organise the internship between them and the participating school.
After this second step has been completed, the JINC project team works with the company to create a plan that will offer the most for the participating students.
Step four prepares the students for the day of the internship. The children carry out research on the participating company and prepare questions to ask the professionals who work there.
On the day of the Flash Internship, the children are given a tour of the company and given tasks to complete during their time spent there. These tasks are designed to give the children the opportunity to experience work for themselves and to allow them to discover the skills that are needed for the jobs within the company.
The final stage of the project brings the children back to the school where they write about their time on the project. The report encourages the children to analyse their experiences and reflect on what they have learned. This reflection can be used to evaluate the success of the project and is an opportunity for the students to think about potential career plans for the future.
The Sofronie Foundation supported this programme from 2016 to 2023 and witnessed the increased enthusiasm of the young people and their awareness on what goes in company buildings. Jinc is now operating in 16 regions in the Netherlands and supported by over 860 corporate partners reaching 84,000 young people per year.
Visit Website: jinc.nl/english