Project and Trainee Period

The Project and Trainee Period allows the student to try out competencies, to refine skills, and to reflect upon how to use the knowledge acquired during the M.Sc. in Economics and Business Administration programme in a ‘real life’ context. Therefore, the student must work independently on one or more problems that are reasonable in scope and resources in terms of the time frame and expected workload compared to the number of ECTS assigned to the course. Ideally, such problems involve innovative problem-solving and are not merely execution of existing routines (e.g. performing communication, service or sales as part of existing routines).  

During the project-oriented study, the student must participate in a series of workshops on Career Management Skills. The aim and purpose of the workshops is to initiate a process of career learning and personal development where the students practice connecting theory and subject-related terms to a practical context. The course introduces the students to different tools and knowledge that enable the students to enter the job market as well as giving the students the possibility to practice using their own subject knowledge in a practical setting through exercises and reflection. Hereby the students obtain skills and competences that can be brought to use on the future labour market as well as in life in general.

The Project and Trainee Period must contain two elements:  

A practical element: A solution of one or more specific problems decided by the company in collaboration with the student and a supervisor from SDU. 

A reflexive element: A reflexive analysis and discussion of the selected problem(s), its potential solution(s), and the method(s) applied.   

There are no specified content areas, but the content should, in general, represent the field of the student’s profile on the MSc in Economics and Business Administration. Moreover, the approach to identifying, analyzing, and solving the problem must be evidence-based. To solve the specific problems at hand, the student may need to search for and implement theories additional to the contents of the compulsory courses.

The objective of the Project and Trainee Period is that the student should use the competencies acquired during the constituent courses of the programme as the starting point for documenting the ability to be able to select, employ and/or reflect upon specific theoretical and analytic approaches in relation to the project work. The student should demonstrate such competence by assisting practical problem-solving in an organization. 

• • A real-life organizational/business context.
• • Internal/external factors affect problem-solving and how these factors change over time.
• • How well methods and theories apply in a concrete problem solving context.
• • The concept of competences, as well as on their own competence profile.
• •Relevant career themes and conditions on the current and future labour market.
• •Identifying how they can create value on the labour market and in society.

• Decide on the problem to be treated during the trainee project, including describing and delimiting the problem.
• Select and justify the choice of relevant theories and methods for solving the problem. 
• Collect data and/or empirical information as a basis for solving the problem. 
• Use the data or empirical information for a business economic/administrative analysis. 
• Reflect on the usefulness of the obtained results; recommend and discuss implications of the results. 
• Consider where their own subject knowledge can be brought to action in settings outside the classroom.
• Connect practical experience to the learnings of their own education.

Upon completing the course, students should be able to:

• Collaborate with others to solve practical problems in firms or institutions.
• Communicate problem descriptions and solution proposals to coworkers and managers. 
• Apply and develop a systematic and theory-driven approach to practical problem solving. 
• Expand their professional network.
• Take the initiatives to bring their competences into play in practical settings.
• Develop cooperative relationships.
• Take responsibility for their own career development.

The student is required to present a project report that clearly reflects the student's utilization of the particular study program’s theoretical and methodical disciplines in his or her solution of the problem and/or reflective analyses and this should be reflected in the choice of literature serving as background for solving the problem. The scope of the literature list and the need for supplementing the study's syllabus with further literature will vary greatly depending on the organization and problems/projects in question.

The workshops have a separate curriculum of 20-40 pages.

The distribution of the project work in the organization is decided in agreement with the organization where the internship takes place. The Project and Trainee Period is usually distributed across one semester (5 months), including supervision, project work in the organization, and the writing of the final assignment. However, the period may also be placed before a semester in for example August or as a combination. Regarding requirements for this, look under “Examination regulations".

The student must attend workshops in Career Management Skills. Throughout the Career Management Skills modules, the students will practice bringing their competencies and resources to action in their project company as well as reflect on their experiences during the semester. The themes of the course include awareness and communication (e.g., in resumé and interview) of own competencies, network and cooperative relations, career planning and development strategy as well as an understanding of the current and future labor market.

The Project- and Trainee Period may take place in a private/public company, an association, or an NGO, and it must take approximately 200 working hours corresponding to roughly 27 days. The student is responsible for contacting the organization in which the internship takes place. The student cannot receive a salary for carrying out the tasks of the internship. The student is allowed to receive funding to cover documented expenses during the project- and trainee period. The student may have a job doing other tasks in the organization during the project- and trainee period. Companies and organizations can give students in unprofitable project-oriented courses and on unpaid study stays an acknowledgment of up to DKK 3,483 a month (2024-level). At the company/organization, an employee must be appointed as a liaison between the university and the student. This person must also assist in resolving practical issues related to the implementation of the project.

Before starting the trainee period (undertaking the actual project work in the organization), the student must have an introductory meeting with a supervisor. The student is free to contact a supervisor at his or her own request. At the introductory meeting, the student should detail the project/work tasks that are expected to be carried out and their relevance to the academic field within the chosen MSc in Economics and Business Administration profile. The work/problems/tasks undertaken by the student during the project must allow the student to test and develop relevant competencies. The form and schedule of the supervision are coordinated jointly by the supervisor and the student. It is strongly recommended that the internal (SDU) supervisor is not closely affiliated with the organization in question. 

The work to be performed in the internship thus must include appropriate tasks, i.e. the student's work must have a specific academic content and include not only general office work or similar, and the content of the internship must be related to one or more specific project(s) within the area of business economics or business administration in a broad sense but within the MSc program profile Proposals for actual working tasks/problems are prepared by the student in collaboration with the contact person in the trainee organization. The schedule for the working days/hours is made in agreement between the student and the organization/company.

There must be a written agreement between the student and the organization in which the internship takes place concerning the learning purpose of the internship as well as the organization of the work in the organization and the target for the final report. The agreement must be approved by the supervisor and the profile responsible (see examination conditions). A project and trainee agreement is available on the programme’s page at www.sdu.dk. It must as a minimum contain the following information:Name of organization/company at which the internship takes place

• Name and title of the contact person at the study site
• Period for internship
• Working hours per week
• Description of work content of the internship
• Goal for the project report

Expected workload (SAT):
Time in company: approximately 200 hours.
Writing of the final assignment: 55 hours.
Career Management Skills Workshop: approximately 15 hours (each class requires exercises to prepare/reflect upon in the project company), curriculum of 20-40 pages.

Total: 270 hours.