At Waterloo, co-op students alternate study terms with co-op work terms and graduate with relevant, paid work experience. This means learning how to navigate the hiring process, applying your skills to real-life problems and learning about yourself along the way.
In Arts, co-op is available in Classical Studies/Classicsthrough Honours Arts or Honours Arts and Business.
- Learn how co-op works
- Learn if co-op is right for you
- Learn about your roles and responsibilities as a co-op student
Co-op eligibility
Co-op is only available to students in Honours academic plans.
- Honours Classical Studies/Classics students require a minimum 70% major average
- Honours Arts and Business, Honours Classical Studies/Classics students require a minimum 70% major average and a minimum 70% average in their Honours Arts and Business courses.
As an Arts student, in most cases you will be assessed for co-op eligibility when you declare your major.
If you are eligible, you will be admitted to co-op prior to starting your second year Fall term (academic level 2A). Learn more about Arts co-op eligibility and speak with Riemer Faber or Brigitte Schneebeli if you have any questions.
Co-op sequences
You will have five work term opportunities in your sequence and you need to complete a minimum of four work terms. The sequence you follow is determined by when you start your studies and your academic plan(s). For example, students in Honours Arts and Business follow a different sequence than students in Honours Arts.
Learn more about which sequence you follow as a Classical Studies/Classics major.
If you are requesting a sequence change, please see:
- Reasons for a sequence change request
- Co-operative Education request for academic/work term sequence change form
Co-op fees
Co-op at Waterloo is predominantly funded by a student-paid co-op fee. Similar to tuition, this fee is associated with being enrolled in a co-op program and is paid in instalments throughout your time at Waterloo. To learn more about these fees and what they cover, visit the Co-operative Education’s fee page.
Work term reports and Professional Development (PD) courses
Co-op students in Arts must successfully complete four work terms, as well as professional development (PD) courses from the PD program and work reports/reflections for each work term. The number of PD courses and work reports/reflections you’ll complete is determined by the academic calendar year you joined the co-op program in the Faculty of Arts. Learn more about the Arts work term report and PD requirements.
Effective Winter 2022, work reports will no longer be required for co-op students in the Faculty of Arts. From Winter 2022 onward, Arts co-op students will instead complete embedded reflections within the required Professional Development (PD) courses.
Fall 2021: This is the last term that work reports will be required. If you are scheduled for a Fall 2021 work term, you are still required to complete a work report (e.g. WKRPT 200, WKRPT 300, WKRPT 400), following the normal submission process. If you are enrolled in PD 12, you will not submit a work report, as you already have an embedded reflection within this PD course.
Winter 2022 and onward: If you are scheduled for any work terms(s) in Winter 2022 and onward, you are not required to complete a separate work report. The WKRPT 200, WKRPT 300, WKRPT 400 courses will no longer be added to your record in Quest.
Co-op supports
As a co-op student, you will have a team of support. Learn how to connect with your team.
All students (co-op and regular streams) have access to Centre for Career Action resources and supports at any point during their time at Waterloo.
Co-op student experiences
Lukas Lemcke - English Tutor in the Writing Center at Humber College in Toronto. The position provided help to both native and non-native speakers with written English.
I quite enjoyed the experience for a number of reasons. I think, the preparatory process, such as resume/CV writing and the interview process, are really helpful training for transitioning into work life after uni. This part of coop also familiarizes students with the Career Services and the resources/workshops etc. that they offer, which is always handy. The work term itself was also neat, not only because of the salary, which is more than most part-time jobs would pay, but also because it allowed me to explore one possible obvious career path as a humanities graduate in a language intensive program. If you’re lucky enough to hit your dream job (and even if not), it also allows building a personal network that might help in finding employment after university. I think this is a very important point to make, especially for students in the humanities, for whom this transition is not always easy, especially if they have very limited experiences beyond Classics (which, after all, mostly lends itself to an academic career).