The English Communication Experiences of Accounting Undergraduates During Internships

Abstract

The issue of poor communication skills among undergraduates, which hamper their performance during internship and employment, has been researched extensively in the literature. However, empirical studies on what the interns have gained and learnt from the internship have not been widely explored. This paper presents the findings of a study of Accounting interns’ experiences in their English communication during their six-month internship at respective companies in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The study employed a qualitative research method using semi-structured interviews with five undergraduate interns from the Faculty of Economics and Management of a public university in Malaysia. Interviews with the managers and supervisor who were in charge of the respondents were also carried out. The interview data was transcribed verbatim, coded and analyzed into specific themes and subthemes using Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-step thematic analysis. The interns’ data was triangulated with supervisor and managers’ views and validated by three independent coders using the Cohen’s Kappa Reliability Test. The findings of the study show that during the internship, the accounting interns gained valuable experience in practicing their English communication skills, which included opportunities to communicate with clients, colleagues and supervisors, enhance professional communication, learn new terms and knowledge and lastly improve their self-confidence. The language and communication skills in which the interns were still lacking need to be addressed by the university in its efforts to produce Accounting graduates who are competent in English communication.