assessing learners' preparedness for work-integrated learning (wil) at walter sisulu university, south africa

The purpose of the article was to assess the effectiveness of the work-preparedness program (WPP) in higher education, using the case of Walter Sisulu University (WSU) in South Africa. Higher education institutions in South Africa and abroad are under increasing pressure to balance the theory base learning for degree programmes with the practical skills desired by the industry. One of the strategies used to achieve this is making work-integrated learning (WIL) a compulsory component of their academic programmes. Work-integrated learning integrates the theory students learn in the classroom with practical experience. Students registered for the National Diploma in Hospitality Management at Walter Sisulu University (WSU) have to undergo two (2) compulsory six-month periods of experiential learning during which they are placed in hotels throughout South Africa. Before students leave the university to join the industry for WIL purposes, they have to go through the WPP also known as “orientation programme”. The purpose of the WPP is educating students about the workplace expectations on them and what they in return can expect from the workplace. This research collected data using self-completion questionnaires about the views of both the hospitality management students (who went through the WPP and who have completed their first WIL programme) and academic WIL coordinators about the extent to which the students are prepared for the WIL programme. The majority of respondents perceived their level of preparedness as a result of attending the WPP as relatively high across all areas. The academic WIL coordinators concur with students in terms of students’ preparedness for WIL. It is hoped that the findings of this evaluation will contribute in improving the WPP for hospitality management.