Aligning Maritime Education: Enhancing Industry Relevance Through Lecturer Internship Programs

Higher education institutions play a central role in developing human resources in the maritime field. Less skilled employment was induced by a gap between university graduates and industry needs, leading to unemployment. This research examines the efforts of higher education institutions to develop curricula in line with maritime industry needs through the implementation of internship programs for lecturers. The research method used is qualitative descriptive, with research subjects being associations in the shipping field, port authorities, and several shipping companies. The results showed that universities under the Ministry of Transportation implemented the lecturer industry internship program. Then, the follow-up of the internship results obtained the sustainability of universities in producing the human resources needed by the business world and the shipping industry. From the evaluation of the internship program for lecturers, several factors hindering its implementation are identified, including internal academic institution issues, the industry not having the same view as the Academic objectives of the institution, and the strategic research plans of universities not aligning with the goals and needs of the shipping industry.