Intelligent Remote Internships
A Qualitative Study of the PREVIEW RIB and the Structuring Role of Educational AI
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46661/ijeri.12788Keywords:
intelligent remote internships, educational artificial intelligence, learning analytics, work-integrated learning, higher education, qualitative research, digital competencesAbstract
The expansion of remote work practices has transformed work-integrated learning in higher education, including university internships. Although remote internships gained visibility after the COVID-19 pandemic, empirical research on their pedagogical design, stakeholder perceptions, and institutional implementation remains limited. This study addresses this gap by analysing stakeholders’ perceptions of remote internships and examining the PREVIEW Remote Internship Blueprint (RIB) as a pedagogical infrastructure that can support the transition from conventional remote internships to intelligent remote internships. A qualitative phenomenological design was adopted. Data were collected through focus groups with students, company mentors, and academic supervisors from five European higher education institutions. Content analysis, semantic analysis, and a SWOT framework were applied using CAQDAS software. Findings indicate that remote internships are perceived as viable and pedagogically meaningful when intentionally structured and adequately supported, particularly in relation to flexibility, accessibility, internationalisation, and the development of digital and transversal competences. At the same time, participants reported challenges related to reduced social interaction, risks of isolation, uneven mentoring capacity, and difficulties in providing timely formative feedback and assessing transversal competences at scale. Building on these qualitative insights, the study discusses how the structured phases, roles, and evidence flows defined in the PREVIEW RIB make it artificial intelligence-ready, enabling learning analytics and educational AI to enhance monitoring, personalisation, formative assessment, and university–enterprise coordination while maintaining human agency and aligning with ethical and sustainability principles.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Francisco José García-Peñalvo, Ana María Pinto-Llorente, Sonia Verdugo-Castro, Lucía García-Holgado
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