Desempeño académico en el área de salud

There are several possible limitations of this research. Firstly, the methodology applied here (IPA) has not previously been used in co-operative education research. There are precedents of phenomenological work in the area (Groenewald 2003; Cullen 2010). However phenomenological examination of internship lived experience is rare in qualitative research on internships (Coll and Kalins 2009). Furthermore, examples of qualitative approaches specifically in hospitality internship research are scarce. IPA findings are ideographic and therefore do not support the generalisation of findings to a wider population. In IPA research sample size is small (although in the case of this research 25 is a large number of interviews by IPA standards) and sampling logic applied in other qualitative approaches is not appropriate. Additionally as IPA’s primary goal is to focus on the “life world” of individual participants, triangulation is not only problematic but may be considered redundant. When experiences emerged that were comparable to the experiences of other interviewees, these were noted and incorporated into the analysis. However, establishing the facts of students’ accounts of their experience is not the primary focus of this research, but rather understanding the meaning of the experience from their perspective. This is the hermeneutical facet of IPA; it rests upon the interpretation of meaning. The narratives that emerge from each interview are not only rich and deep but are rooted in an approach that

160 aims to minimise preconceptions, and as mentioned in the beginning of this chapter, lead to unexpected territory.

Another possible objection that may be raised is the reliance on memory. As interviews took place with final year undergraduate students six months to one year after the end of their internship the reliability of memory may be questioned. As discussed in chapter 2, much past research into students’ attitudes to internship experience relies on post experience surveys carried out close to the end of their internship. Few researchers have attempted to explore the interpretation of the experience over time. Indeed, it was noted in analysis that negative events were often given a positive spin. Interviewees may recall events incorrectly, or recount them selectively to create a narrative that puts forward a more positive account. Methodologically the recollections themselves whatever their veracity are the focus of IPA. The “lived experience” of the interviewee includes how they might incorrectly recall or retell past experiences. Also how they interpret those past experiences in their current life world is an area of interest to IPA.

Another possible limitation is the recruitment methods used in this study. All the interviewees came from the same school within the same British university. Homogeneity of experience is a key selection criterion for IPA research, therefore although from varying demographic backgrounds, the participants all experienced similar structures of support and mentoring provided by the same university and were studying and working in similar contexts. Participants were self-selecting which raises the possibility that students who felt less engaged with the internship experience were hidden from this sample. As noted in the findings, interviewees’ rich narratives often raised unsettling accounts of adversity not often associated with internships in previous research. As discussed previously these accounts though meaningful to the interviewees were often accepted as part of the expatriate internship experience and sometimes seen as sources of strength, which place the interviewee in a positive position. It is possible that students for whom the experience was negative did not come forward.

Another possible limitation is the inexperience of the researcher as a doctoral candidate. Although this researcher has extensive professional experience of working with students and personal experience of expatriate life and work the skill of the interviewer is integral to the success of such research (Smith, Flowers et al. 2009). To mitigate against such inexperience

161 all appropriate doctoral training courses were attended within the graduate school of the University of Birmingham and IPA workshops held at other institutions were attended. Work in progress and final findings were presented at various West Midlands Doctoral Colloquiums, CHMI Research Conferences and an internal staff teaching and learning conference to gain advice and feedback on the methodological approach and quality of work. Finally, Yardley’s (2008) framework for the limitations of qualitative research discussed in chapter 3 were applied to this research, namely:

1. Sensitivity to context: IPA was chosen to address the potential sensitivities surrounding students’ experience of life and work in a foreign country and to enable them to explore freely their employment and educational experience provided by the university. The open extended interview process allowed the exploration of individual experience. Sensitivity to the educational relationship between interviewer and interviewee was addressed through a reflexive approach to research design.

2. Commitment and Rigour: IPA offers a clear framework and guidance on collecting and analysing information (Smith and Osbourn 2008, Smith, Flowers et al. 2009). IPA introductory and advanced training workshops were attended. This research has followed such guidance and documented the process in detail.

3. Transparency and Coherence: Original audio recordings; Transcripts; tabulated stages of thematic analysis are available on request within the parameters of university regulations to other academics wishing to evaluate how the methodology was applied 4. Impact and Importance: Policy initiatives to encourage work experience and international skills development are given increasing importance at institutional and sector level (UUK 2017). The impact of this thesis lies within (1) the in-depth insights into the lived world of students with expatriate internship experience (2) a focus on a particular vocational sector (hotel management) (3) a focus on employability and university supported work experience (4) implications for practice within the host HEI and industrial partners.