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Benefits & Responsibilities

Benefits of Hiring a Science Co-op Student

• Gain access to academically well-qualified and highly motivated students
• Integrate personnel with technical experience and drive at a lower cost
• Leverage the extended work term to save on recruitment, onboarding and training costs while maintaining consistency in workforce and workflow
• Evaluate potential candidates for future full-time employment through an extended assessment period
• Benefit from having student ambassadors who can promote your organization to other prospective students
• Qualify for tax credits and government funding, with assistance from the university to complete required documentation
• Ensure that students remain eligible for health and dental coverage, and maintain the good standing of student loans or scholarships while employed
• Receive ongoing support from university staff throughout the work term, including regular check-ins, structured deliverables and timely assistance with any questions or concerns
• Ensure students remain focused on work term goals while maintaining appropriate academic balance:
  • Students on a formal co-op work term maintain full-time student status and may only take up to 0.5 credits per 4-month term (asynchronous or evening courses), a limit set in consultation with the Academic Dean to support student success in both work and academics.
  • During the academic year (September–April), individuals not on a formalized co-op work term are not registered students unless taking courses, with 0.5–3.0 credits considered part-time and 3.5–5.0 credits full-time.

Employer Responsibilities

It is expected that employers will:

• Use the Job Offer Form to extend all co-op offers.
• Honour all offers of employment.
• Follow Employer Guidelines.
• Follow the "Procedure for Resolving a Work Integrated Learning Issue"

Typical Work Terms (4 - 16 months)

Science Co-op Work Term Structure

Students must complete a minimum of 12 months of approved science-related co-op work to fulfill program requirements. This may be done through a combination of a 4-month summer work term after second year followed by 8 to 16 months between third and fourth year, or by completing 12 to 16 months consecutively between third and fourth year. Students may complete up to 20 months of co-op experience in total.