Waterloo Experience (WE) Accelerate: Spring 2023 work term

The Waterloo Experience (WE) Accelerate program will help you develop in-demand skills. We collaborated with industry leaders to offer you this innovative option in your first work term. Through content provided by industry collaborators and team-based project experiences, you’ll learn skills while gaining real-world experience - all while earning a flexible work term credit.

WE Accelerate was wonderful. You learned skills, you practiced them and went out to try it out in the real world. That is probably the most crystal clear idea I have had of work-integrated learning.

Julian Lucido, Faculty of Math student

How the WE Accelerate program can help:

Build the skills employers are looking for.
Apply new skills to real world projects.
Learn from content created by industry experts.
Leverage your experience in future job searches through career education.
Participate remotely from any location.
Earn a flexible work term credit (learn more about standard vs. flexible work term requirements and how many of each you need to graduate).
Opt-in to the program and continue to look for a traditional work term. Your spot in the program is secured until the opt-out date of May 26.
Receive a $1,000 award for completing the program.

How WE Accelerate works

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Career component

Complete approximately 60 hours total of career programming.

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Project experience

Complete approximately 120 hours of team-based, real-world project work (roughly 25 hours per week across a 5-week span).

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Skills development

Complete approximately 100 hours of skills development provided by an industry collaborator.

WE Accelerate streams being offered in Spring 2023

MICROSOFT AZURE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE | MICROSOFT

Microsoft offers the Azure Artificial Intelligence stream. It is an introduction to AI and its application across industry. You'll learn about:

Azure Fundamentals content and certification
Azure AI Fundamentals content and certification
Design Thinking

Watch the Microsoft overview to learn more about what the stream offers.

Enrollment cap: Flexible

Career component	The first week of the program (May 29 - June 2) will feature onboarding and career programming through a one-hour synchronous session daily, followed by asynchronous activities totalling 25 hours for the entire week. An additional 10 hours of career programming will occur throughout the skills and project experience portion. In the final week of the program (August 8 - 14) you will reflect on the career program conducted earlier and complete your summative assignment. This will total approximately 25 hours for the entire week.
Skills training experience	The skills training for the Microsoft Azure AI stream will focus primarily on the Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900) and the Azure AI Fundamentals (AI-900) certifications. You’ll study for these certifications and will have access to hands-on tutorials within the content so you can practice the skills associated with using Azure. The Azure and Azure AI content will be supplemented with Microsoft’s AI Business School content and material from our colleagues at Microsoft about Design Thinking and what it’s like to work at Microsoft.
Synchronous sessions	There will be an introductory session on June 5 and a project information session on July 4. We strongly recommend attending these events. There will be additional live sessions, group meetings and office hours starting during the skills training phase of the program. These will be ongoing throughout the project experience section of the program. To successfully complete the program, it is mandatory to sign up for a proctored examination for the AI-900 and AZ-900 certifications. AZ-900 Exam Dates: June 12 - 16 AI-900 Exam Dates: June 26 - 30 As part of the project experience, you must meet with your Microsoft Mentors once a week for 15 minutes. These meetings are mandatory and will be scheduled by the mentor. It is also mandatory that you attend a final presentation session in the last week of the project (July 31 to August 4) with your group. These will be scheduled and you will be notified as early as possible.
Total synchronous time commitment	Your certification exams for AZ-900 and AI-900 are mandatory course requirements. Attendance at other synchronous sessions is technically optional, but we strongly recommend that you attend. We’ll post recordings of synchronous session on Learn for you to watch if you are unable to make it. To successfully complete your project experience, you’ll need to find time to meet virtually with teammates and Microsoft Mentors on a weekly basis to successfully.
Skills curriculum assessment	You must successfully pass the AZ-900 (Azure Fundamentals) and the AI-900 (Azure AI Fundamentals) examinations in order to pass the skills curriculum component of this stream of programming.
Project experience	Projects in this stream are provided by Microsoft. Project teams will use their Azure and AI skills to complete deliverables in tandem with industry partners or propose solutions to important global issues. Students in the Microsoft stream will have access to mentors from Microsoft to assist in project completion. Staff from Microsoft will assess your final project deliverable, resulting in your final overall evaluation. At the discretion of your Microsoft mentor, the evaluation may be team-based or an individual evaluation.
Project mentors	You’ll be mentored by staff from Microsoft as you work on your team-based project experience.
Privacy notice from Microsoft	Please note Microsoft’s Privacy Statement.

BRIGHTSPACE TRAINING STREAM DETAILS

Career component	The first week of the program (May 27 - 31) will feature onboarding and career programming through a one-hour synchronous session daily, followed by asynchronous activities totalling 25 hours for the entire week. An additional 10 hours of career programming will occur throughout the skills and project experience portion. In the final week of the program (August 6 - 12) you will reflect on the career program conducted earlier and complete your summative assignment. This will total approximately 25 hours for the entire week. What you'll learn: How to explore different career paths, industries and job roles that can be applied in later work terms or on your career journey. Essential professional skills such as communication, teamwork, time management, problem-solving and leadership. Effective job search strategies, including résumé writing, cover letter preparation, networking techniques and interview skills for future work terms. How to reflect on their career goals, strengths, areas for improvement and experiences gained throughout the program.
Skills training experience	The skills training for the D2L Brightspace Stream will be a combination of D2L’s Brightspace certificate training program as well as additional content and exercises provided by the University of Waterloo. In addition to the D2L Brightspace training, you’ll have access to a sandbox in Learn where you will have Course Instructor rights which will allow you to create and grade assessments, set up a gradebook and much more! What you'll learn: Enhanced understanding of educational technology tools and their applications in teaching and learning. Understanding of best practices in online course delivery and management, including accessibility and user experience considerations. Critical thinking skills developed through engaging with additional content and exercises in things like pedagogy, learning theories and educational trends. Ability to adapt and apply acquired knowledge and skills to their specific teaching contexts, fostering continuous improvement in their instructional practices.
Synchronous sessions	There will be an introductory session on June 3^rd and a showcase session during the last week of skills training. There will be weekly group meetings with your Team Lead starting during the skills training phase of the program. Attendance is mandatory. In addition, in order to be successful in the project experience you will need to meet and work with your team members and project employers on a weekly basis. What you'll learn: Develop communication and presentation skills through participation in sessions and learn to articulate ideas, insights and project outcomes effectively. Practice time management skills by scheduling and attending mandatory sessions and meetings. Apply theoretical knowledge and skills acquired during synchronous sessions to real-world projects and challenges. Gain practical experience and insights relevant to future career opportunities.
Total synchronous time commitment	Synchronous meetings will be scheduled for no more than 2 hours weekly. You will need to find time to meet with your team members and employers to successfully complete your projects. Though most of the time commitment associated with the stream will be asynchronous in nature.
Skills curriculum assessment	While there will be various activities for you to complete during the skills curriculum component, you must successfully pass D2L’s three certificate programs to pass the skills curriculum component of this stream of programming.
Project experience	Projects in this stream will give you an opportunity to apply your new Brightspace skills in an authentic context, building online course content and other training materials with some of D2L’s clients. What you'll learn: Enhanced communication and teamwork skills through interactions with clients, colleagues and stakeholders. Exposure to project management principles and practices, including task prioritization, timeline management and resource allocation. Increased understanding of the challenges and considerations involved in implementing educational technology solutions in various educational contexts. Development of problem-solving skills by addressing real-world challenges and finding creative solutions. Recognition of the importance of user experience and accessibility considerations in designing online course content and training materials.
Project employers	You’ll work with employers sourced through Co-operative and Experiential Education’s Employment Relations team. Projects may also be provided by departments at the University of Waterloo.

MODERN WEB APPLICATION DESIGN STREAM | MANULIFE

Manulife offers the Modern Web Application Design stream. It is focused on web application development. You'll learn about:

• Front-end and back-end design
• Continuous operation planning for web apps
• Building a microservices backend

Please note: While no previous knowledge is required to take this stream, we recommend familiarity with basic coding principles for participants. Watch the Manulife overview to learn more about this stream.

Enrollment cap: 75 students

Career component	The first week of the program (May 29 - June 2) will feature onboarding and career programming through a daily one-hour synchronous session, followed by asynchronous activities totaling 25 hours for the entire week. An additional 10 hours of career programming will occur throughout the skills and project experience portion. In the final week of the program (August 8 - 14) you will reflect on the career program conducted earlier and complete your summative assignment. This will total approximately 25 hours for the entire week.
Skills training experience	The skills training for the Modern Web Application Design Stream will focus on introducing the technologies that all modern web applications are built from. We will start with the basics of JavaScript as a primer, before moving into topics such as REST in NodeJS, GraphQL, and eventdriven architecture for backend services, as well as React and Redux for building modern front ends. We’ll then review good software development principles, such as Test-Driven Development (TDD) and how to effectively debug your applications. To assist with designing web applications that truly meet the needs of customers, we will also cover the engineering problem-solving framework that includes human-centred design principles. Upon completion of this stream, you will be able to confidently build a web application that is well-designed and tested, armed with effective problem-solving methodology that can be leveraged later in your university and professional career!
Synchronous sessions	Manulife will have multiple synchronous sessions throughout the skills training component. Dates and times are tentatively as follows: June 5: Kickoff + Basic Tooling, Modern JS June 6: REST & JS Debugging June 8: React June 19: Mid-skills review June 20: Event-driven Architecture & Eng Problem solving June 22: FE & BE TDD June 23: Career coaching / Q&A
Total synchronous time commitment	There are approximately 28 hours of live, hands-on sessions with Manulife Engineering instructors that we’ll record for later review. Technically, attendance at other synchronous sessions optional, but we strongly recommend that you attendance. In addition to these synchronous sessions, you’ll spend a majority of your time reviewing content, practicing, and completing lab exercises, and working on your final project.
Skills curriculum assessment	While there will be various hands-on activities for you to complete in each synchronous session, you must submit a total of six individual lab exercises and successfully pass the final project to pass the skills curriculum component of this stream of programming.
Project experience	You’ll apply your new web application development skills by working on a web application development project provided by Manulife or one of the Co-operative and Experiential Education’s employer partners.
Project mentors	You’ll work with employers sourced through Co-operative Education’s employment relations team.

DIGITAL BOOTCAMP

The Digital Bootcamp stream features various mentors throughout the stream. It focuses on a variety of digital strategies to attract, engage and market content to users. You'll learn about:

• Website design for desktop and mobile
• Search engine optimization (SEO)
• Content, email, and video marketing
• Office productivity software (optional)

Enrollment cap: 50 students

Career component	The program's first week (September 23 - 27) will feature onboarding and career programming through a daily one-hour synchronous session, followed by asynchronous activities totalling 25 hours for the entire week. An additional 10 hours of career programming will occur throughout the skills and project experience portion.In the program's final week (December 2 - 6), you’ll reflect on the career program conducted earlier and complete your summative assignment. This will total approximately 25 hours for the entire week. What you'll learn: How to explore different career paths, industries and job roles that can be applied in later work terms or on your career journey. Essential professional skills such as communication, teamwork, time management, problem-solving and leadership. Effective job search strategies, including résumé writing, cover letter preparation, networking techniques and interview skills for future work terms. How to reflect on their career goals, strengths, areas for improvement and experiences gained throughout the program.
Skills training experience	Students in this stream will begin by learning about a marketing philosophy known as Inbound and how this applies to a company's digital presence, both in terms of its website and its social media activity. What you'll learn: How to attract, engage, and delight customers by putting themselves in their target audience's shoes and creating opportunities for two-way conversations. About the importance of consistent digital branding across all channels and how to follow or even build a brand guide. How to create and design websites in WordPress and other platforms, and ensure that those websites are responsive, user-friendly, and accessible. How to apply content marketing, video marketing and email marketing to a website to keep it current and attract repeat visits. About search engine optimization and how to use data to both measure and boost the performance of a website.
Synchronous sessions	There will be an introductory session on September 30 and a showcase session during the last week of skills training. There will be weekly Tuesday and Thursday live sessions during skills training. Synchronous discussions and workshops will be scheduled for no more than 5 hours weekly. It is STRONGLY recommended that you attend all live sessions. If for some reason you are unable to attend the live sessions, recordings will be available. Students will also need to find time each week to meet with their team lead and work together with their group members to complete several team-based activities. What you'll learn: Develop communication and presentation skills through participation in sessions and learn to articulate ideas, insights and project outcomes effectively. Practice time management skills by scheduling and attending mandatory sessions and meetings. Apply theoretical knowledge and skills acquired during synchronous sessions to real-world projects and challenges. Gain practical experience and insights relevant to future career opportunities.
Total synchronous time commitment	Synchronous discussions and workshops will be scheduled for no more than five hours weekly, and all discussions and workshops will be recorded for asynchronous viewing. Students will also need to work together with their teams to complete several team-based activities. Most of the time commitment associated with Digital Bootcamp will be asynchronous in nature.
Skills curriculum assessment	To pass the skills development portion of this stream, you need to do the following: 1. Submit proof of earning the following Hubspot certificates Inbound Email Marketing Content Marketing 2. Submit proof of having completed the following online courses LinkedIn’s User Experience for Web Design course Google’s Analytics for Beginners course 3. Pass the 7 included quizzes with a grade of at least 70% each after three attempts
Project experience	You’ll apply your Digital Bootcamp skills to work on improving a company's digital presence through things like a better user experience (UX) or improved search engine optimization (SEO). Projects are provided by one of Co-operative and Experiential Education’s employer partners. What you'll learn: Enhanced understanding of digital marketing techniques and methodologies. Hands-on experience in utilizing digital tools and platforms for analysis and improvement. Ability to formulate actionable recommendations based on analytical findings. Improved communication skills through interaction with employer partners and presenting findings effectively. Enhanced problem-solving skills by addressing real-world challenges in a professional setting.
Project employers	Students will work with employers sourced through Co-operative Education’s employment relations team.

Timeline and what to expect

WE Accelerate opt-in/opt-out period	Beginning April 12
WE Accelerate Virtual Information Day	Wednesday, April 12 Industry collaborators discuss their streams and former students discuss their experience during our WE Accelerate Virtual Information Day event. Opt-in form will go live in WaterlooWorks following the event.
Deadline to opt-in	Friday, May 19 at 4 p.m. (ET) Deadline to opt-in and indicate your streams of interest.
Streams assigned	Tuesday, May 23 After registration closes on May 19, students will be sorted into streams based on preference (first-come, first-served) and enrollment caps. We’ll ensure you know which stream you’re in before the opt-out deadline of Friday, May 26.
Deadline to opt-out	Friday, May 26 at 9 a.m. (ET) After this, we expect you to commit to WE Accelerate as you would any other work term as there are limited spots available.
WE Accelerate work term begins	May 26
Career programming (part 1)	May 29 - June 2 Complete onboarding and career curriculum (part 1). Approximately 25 hours during this first week, with approximately 10 additional hours of career programming to occur throughout. 1 hour of synchronous content daily, with all other content provided asynchronously.
Skill development programming	Beginning June 5 Complete skill development content provided by industry collaborator(s). Approximately 100 hours, with varying degrees of synchronous content depending on the stream.
Project experience	July 4 - August 4 (exact timing will depend on the stream/project) Complete industry collaborator projects in teams and receive feedback. Approximately 120 hours of project work to be expected across 3-5 weeks (all projects to be completed by August 4). Please note: the hours to complete your project work will be determined by the project provider, with the expectation you are available. Industry collaborators will complete a Project Evaluation Form and assign individual ratings OR an overall rating for each project team (up to the employers discretion). Project evaluation form deadline (for employers): Friday, August 11.
Career programming (part 2)	August 8 - August 14 Complete career curriculum (part 2) and final summative assignment (due August 14). Approximately 25 hours.

Opt-in to WE Accelerate

We invite you to opt-in for WE Accelerate by filling out our opt-in form on WaterlooWorks by Friday, May 19 at 4 p.m. (ET). In this form, you'll indicate your interest in the skill streams. The WE Accelerate team will use this information to assign students to streams on a first-come, first-served basis. Each stream has different enrollment caps based on how many students industry collaborators can accommodate.

Not sure if you want to commit? Even if you choose to opt-in to reserve your spot, you can opt-out of the program if you change your mind any time before Friday, May 26 at 9 a.m. (ET).

Follow the steps below to opt-in by Friday, May 19 at 4 p.m. (ET):

Login to WaterlooWorks and select Submit a form.
Complete the form below:
- Category: Waterloo Experience (WE) Accelerate Program
- Sub-category: Opt-in – WE Accelerate (5026)
After completing the opt-in form, you’ll be assigned to a stream on a first-come, first-served basis depending on how you ranked your streams of interest. We’ll let you know which stream you’ve been assigned to sometime after the deadline to opt-in (Friday, May 19 at 4 p.m. ET) but before the deadline to opt-out (Friday, May 26 at 9 a.m. ET).
Please note: You do NOT need to complete an Arrange Own Job form or search for additional part-time work on top of WE Accelerate - just submitting the opt-in form and completing the components of your assigned stream is enough to get you co-op credit!

If you change your mind, follow the steps below to opt-out by Friday, May 26 at 9 a.m. (ET):

Login to WaterlooWorks and select Submit a form.
Complete the form below:
- Category: Waterloo Experience (WE) Accelerate Program
- Sub-category: Opt-out – WE Accelerate (5027)
If we receive your opt-out form by the deadline of Friday, May 26 at 9 a.m. (ET), we'll remove you from the program.
After this deadline, we expect that you will be committed to fulfilling the requirements for your stream to earn your co-op credit. WE Accelerate is a work term credit, so withdrawing from it after the deadline is considered leaving a work term early and may involve consequences. Please contact your co-op advisor for more details.

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How the WE Accelerate program can help: