Co-operative Education

Programs

• Honours Business Administration/Honours BA Economics
• Honours BBA and BSc Computer Science, or BBA and BA Financial Mathematics Double Degree
• Honours BBA (WLU) and Honours Bachelor of Computer Science (UW) Double Degree
  
• Honours BBA (WLU) and Honours BMath (UW) Double Degree
• Honours Bachelor of Business Technology (Brantford)

Director, Co-operative Education and Workplace Partnerships: Karen McCargar, BA, ext. 4105

"Co-operative education," a form of work-integrated learning, is a model of education that integrates and alternates a student's academic learning with workplace learning in fields relevant to the student's academic and personal goals.

Both work and academic terms are full-time and follow a formalized sequence. Co-op work terms are approximately the length of each study term. Students are exposed to the work environment during more than one season of the year and their co-op programs begin and end on an academic term.

Students in the Business Administration and Mathematics (University of Waterloo), and Business Administration and Computer Science (University of Waterloo) double degree programs begin their first four-month work term in the winter term of Year 2. Co-op students in other programs begin their alternating sequence of work and study terms at the end of Year 2. Honours BA Economics students and most Business Administration students begin their alternating sequence of work and study terms at the end of Year 2. Some Business Administration students, however, complete their first work term in the fall after five academic terms.Students in the Business Technology Management (BBTM) (Brantford) program begin their alternating work and study terms after completing the first academic term of Year 3. 

The time spent in the workplace comprises at least 30% of the time spent in academic study. 

Students in Honours Business Administration and Honours BA Economics, and the double degree program in Business and Financial Mathematics accumulate 12 months of practical work experience through three work terms of four months each, and graduate four months after students in the regular sequence. Co-op students in the double degree programs in Business Administration and Mathematics (University of Waterloo) and Business Administration and Computer Science (University of Waterloo) and Business and Administration and Computer Science accumulate 12 to 16 months of practical work experience through three to four work terms of four months each, and graduate within four and two-thirds to five years. Students in the BBTM program accumulate 12 months of practical work experience through one eight-month and one four-month work term, and graduate in just over four years.

Co-op students follow the same academic program as regular students. Because of the alternating pattern of work and study terms, there may be some differences in the scheduling of individual courses.

Participants complete COOP-000 - Fundamentals of Co-operative Education, a pass/fail half-credit course that introduces students to the requirements, processes and essential topics of co-operative education. Co-op credits are in addition to a student’s academic program and are not included in a student’s overall GPA or in their credit count.

Employers provide job descriptions, and the Department of Co-operative Education accepts those jobs that provide a suitable learning environment and engage the student in productive work. Students apply to employers with whom they are interested in working. Employers are encouraged to interview on campus. Although the university cannot guarantee that students will obtain employment, staff members in the Co-op Office strive to make suitable employment available to co-op students.

Employers supervise their students and evaluate their workplace performance. Co-op staff members monitor each student's progress during the work term. The co-op curriculum supports student learning goals, personal evaluation and reflection; students are required to set goals each term and write work term reports. Employers compensate students for the work they perform.

A co-op fee is payable in each academic term of Year 2 and Year 3. Students in the Business Administration and Mathematics (University of Waterloo) and Business Administration and Computer Science (University of Waterloo) double degree program pay the entire co-op fee for Year 2 in the fall term. In Year 3 and Year 4, they pay a co-op fee each academic term, according to the sequence of work and study that they have chosen.

In addition to the 20.0 to 26.0 credits required by their program, co-op students must complete the following requirements to graduate with the Co-op Education designation:

• COOP-000 Fundamentals of Co-operative Education course.
• Three work terms, normally completed over four-month blocks. (Students in double degree programs other than Financial Mathematics may complete an optional fourth work term.)
• Three pass/fail companion half-credit courses, one taken concurrently with each four-month work term, beginning with COOP-001 Co-operative Education Work Term 1, then COOP-002 and COOP-003. Double degree students pursuing an optional fourth work term also complete an additional companion course, COOP-004.

To obtain the co-op designation, students must complete all the requirements of both their academic program and co-op education requirements. Students completing co-op will have the notation "Co-operative Education" appended to their transcript and noted on their degree.

Application Procedure

Students must complete five full credit courses (ten half-credit courses) and meet the requirements of progression to second year to be considered for admission to co-op. We give preference to students who complete their courses by May of first year but will consider students who don't meet requirements until the end of August. Students who have more than 7.5 credits are not eligible for co-op as they are too far along in their studies.

The only entry point for co-op is at the beginning of the fall term in second year. Students who have withdrawn or have been removed from their academic program are not eligible to continue in co-op, even if they are later reinstated into that program. Students who have withdrawn or have been removed from double degree programs before their first work term and who register in the BBA program at Laurier may not continue in or graduate with the co-op designation unless they are successful in the competitive co-op admission process at the beginning of second year, as outlined in the applicable Co-Operative Education section of the calendar, Double degree students who have completed at least one work term, and who transfer to a single degree program other than the BBA program, are advised to consult with the Co-Op office about their eligibility to continue in co-op.

A student is eligible to participate only once in the co-op admission process.

Students on study permits may apply to co-op programs at Laurier. Note, however, that there may be a limit on the number of spaces available to international students.