Internships significantly influence student career outcomes; however, at the University of Virginia (UVA), relevant data on internships, student career barriers, employer engagement, and post-graduation plans have historically existed in isolated silos.
Researchers Javier Alonso, Akaash Kamdar, and Luke Schneider undertook a capstone project—part of the Master's in Data Science Residential program— that explores how internships impact career outcomes at the UVA. To address fragmentation issues that previously limited actionable insights for key stakeholders, including UVA leadership, the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV), and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), the team integrated previously disconnected datasets; including student surveys, Handshake platform data, and external economic indicators; into a cohesive analytical framework.
They employed exploratory data analysis, interactive Streamlit dashboards, and machine learning models to examine internship participation, state retention rates, barriers to career development, and factors predicting student outcomes.
Their analysis found that approximately 66% of UVA students participated in one or more internships, and these students were 32.2% more likely to secure full-time employment upon graduation
compared to their peers who did not participate in internships.
Furthermore, internships within Virginia strongly correlated with higher in-state retention rates (60-77%). Barriers analysis revealed that networking and identifying opportunities, rather than skill deficits, represented the primary hurdles for students. Predictive modeling yielded an accuracy ex-ceeding 67% and macro-average F1 scores between 0.58 and 0.65, suggesting a moderate predictive capability with potential for improvement in future work.
Recommendations from this study include improving data collection protocols and promoting company-sponsored academic projects to alleviate identified barriers for students. These insights enable UVA and state stakeholders to strategically enhance experiential learning and career preparation initiatives.
For the detailed report, please contact David Lapinski at dal8d@virginia.edu.
Researchers: Javier Alonso, Akaash Kamdar, Luke Schneider
Sponsors: David Lapinski
Advisors: Adam Tashman