Students are required to complete four acceptable work terms and write four acceptable work reports in order to graduate with the "Co-operative Program" designation on their degree. Students are given five work term opportunities in which to complete these requirements throughout the normal academic/work term sequence.
Co-op students admitted beginning Fall 2007 are also required to complete Professional Development (PD) courses that they will be required to complete for credit throughout their co-op terms. The PD course content will be on-line and made available via the University of Waterloo Angel Course Environment (UW-ACE).
The first course titled PD 1: Co-op Fundamentals will be completed prior to the student's first work term (normally their 2A fall term). The course will lead students through resources and activities to provide them with the tools to be competitive in their employment search and prepare them for a successful first work term.
Topics discussed in PD1 include:
- navigating JobMine (online job system)
- preparing résumés and cover letters
- searching for employment/applying for jobs
- developing interview skills
- ranking jobs
- being successful on the job
- work term evaluations
The Centre for Career Action also offers various resources and workshops to:
- help with your résumé/cover letter
- help with interview skills
Please call CECS at (519) 888-4047 or e-mail: cecscs@uwaterloo.ca
Work reports
Students are required to write four acceptable work reports to meet the co-op requirements. Students in AHS must follow the Work Report Guidelines from the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences.
Students are required to enrol in PD2, Critical Reflection and Report Writing during their first work term. This course assists students in applying report writing skills by focusing on analysis and best practices in report writing, recognizing the interaction between prior experiences and new experiences, and exploring, clarifying and testing underlying assumptions about values regarding report writing through critical reflection. In Applied Health Sciences, the PD2 course counts as the student's first work report.
During each following work term, students are required to submit a work report to complete the final 3 required reports. Work reports are due 7 days (1 week) after the start of classes following your work term. The reports are marked and returned on the first day of the 3rd month of the term (i.e. November 1, March 1, July 1). Any student who is required to resubmit their report must do so by the last day of classes for that term. Resubmitted reports must include the original report and grading sheet along with the resubmitted sections or entire resubmitted report (as required). Resubmitted reports are usually marked by the end of the term.
Work reports are submitted to and picked up from Krista Mills (see below). Any questions about writing your work report should be directed to the Student Services Coordinator: Krista Mills.
Other questions?
Co-op has a student reference manual to help answer your questions.
Please visit the Co-operative Education and Centre for Career Action websites for more information.
