As I've written before, students and universities each exchange two forms of capital. Students provide academic achievement and tuition. Universities provide education and a tangible, recognizable asset: a degree. This thing might provide an education. But will anyone recognize that?
I appreciate that they realize people want credentials, but what an poorly chosen name that is. Nano makes it sound inconsequential, and degree, well, it isn't one.
Continuing education programs have pitched short, noncredit "mini-MBAs" for years. Self-study books with titles like "Pocket MBA" and "Portable MBA" have been been in print for over 20 years. Major universities have public talks on medicine called "mini med schools." I guess the logic is "Hey, we can't really be overselling it if we add a prefix indicating that it's small." I'm not sure how much I agree.
That's all you need to know about the program, right there. An internship is not a sign of commitment by a company--it is a sign of non-commitment. They want to see if the program is worth anything so they toss it a bone. The better question will be how many of those interns go on to have full time paid employment with the company. If it is greater than 5% I'd be shocked.
We have another thread on these nanodegrees, which Asad has also visited. http://www.degreeinfo.com/general-distance-learning-discussions/48693-t-udacity-partnership.html Johann