Collaborative Approach to Redefining Intership: Aple Lab as a Platform

This paper explores the potential for redefining student internships in undergraduate education through participatory and collaborative approaches. It draws on existing research and the framework of the international APLE (Architecture Pop-up Lab Exchange) project, implemented with the support of the Erasmus+ programme at the Faculty of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy, University of Banja Luka. The project focuses on integrating education, research, and professional practice. The conditions under which young architects enter the professional world depend on multiple factors—from the quality of academic preparation to broader shifts within the architectural profession. These circumstances raise questions about how academia responds to contemporary challenges and fosters effective cooperation with the professional sector. The aim of this research is to identify ways in which students, educators, and practitioners can jointly shape models of student internships in the regional context, moving beyond traditional understandings of internships limited primarily to architectural offices. The methodology is based on participatory action research and includes Pop-Up Café events, structured stakeholder mapping, thematic tables, and plenary discussions. These formats generated qualitative insights into collaboration dynamics, existing barriers, and emerging professional trajectories. The findings provide a basis for improving the structure of student internships and aligning them more closely with current professional trends. Results indicate that, although traditional architectural offices continue to dominate, the wider ecosystem of professional internships is diverse and underutilized. Related industries, alternative career pathways, and new forms of professional engagement remain insufficiently recognized. The study also identifies a communication gap between academia and the professional sector, limited institutional capacities, and systemic challenges that hinder the development of alternative internship models. The APLE Pop-Up Lab demonstrates that professional internships encompass a broad spectrum of activities, that participatory formats enable real-time feedback, and that collaboration between academia and practitioners strengthens educational capacities. As a transferable platform, this approach can be adopted by other educational institutions, supporting the goals of Erasmus+ and contributing to the modernization of practice and the advancement of architectural education.