Co-op fee FAQs

The co-op fee is a program participation fee spread out in fee installments over a student’s undergraduate academic career. When you are charged the fee depends on your academic program. It is not a "per work term" fee. Instead, it represents the cost of running the co-op program and it is spread out over a specific number of academic terms.

Your fees for the term will be adjusted only if your program change is approved before the date indicated below. If your change is not approved until after this date, it will be effective the following term.

• Fall term November 1
• Winter term February 1
• Spring term July 1

Your fees for the term will be adjusted once your new sequence has been updated within Quest. If you have not yet paid your fees for the upcoming term, your fee bill will be updated to remove the previously charged fees. If you have already paid your fees for the upcoming term, and a credit balance is showing on Quest, you can learn more about your fee options through Student Financial Services.

You can contact Student Financial Services, if you have questions about the number of co-op fees you have been charged, or about any other questions you have regarding your student account; for example, payments, refunds and due dates.

Your co-op fee helps to fund the many supports and resources available to you as a co-op student. We understand that co-op can sometimes be challenging, but we’re here for you every step of the way. To help you navigate through the challenges you may be experiencing, access co-op support and resources or connect with our co-op student experience team.

The co-op fee is a co-op program participation fee, similar to tuition. You’ll pay the co-op fee multiple times throughout your degree as it is spread out over several academic terms. The co-op designation is dependent on students' participation in the entire co-op system. Participation in the co-op program includes resources beyond WaterlooWorks job postings and interview services. Students who arrange their own jobs are still participating in and using resources in the co-op system.

To be clear, the co-op fee is not a "job-finding fee" per work term. It represents the cost of running the co-op program, annual initiatives, program improvements and the many services and supports available to you as a co-op student. Students pay the co-op fee to ensure the allocation of all resources needed to build a strong co-op program.

We put students at the centre of what we do and work together with students to prioritize changes and improvements based on what you tell us (through channels like the co-op student experience survey). We continuously make improvements to the co-op process and services. Recent initiatives include:

• New model that pairs students with a consistent co-op advisor throughout their co-op degree.
• New Employer-Student Direct job board in WaterlooWorks helps with listing pre-approved co-op jobs outside of our rank/match process.
• New strategies, including AI tools, to help bring more quality co-op jobs in front of students.
• Securing funding through third-party grants and sponsorship to help increase supports for student equity and accessibility.

Our priority is to keep the co-op fee as low as possible while still offering students valuable services like these and responsibly managing our costs. See more of the outcomes from student feedback on the co-op student experience page.

Please see the co-op fee visual breakdown on the co-op fee page to learn how your fee is allocated to all co-op resources. 

The co-op fee is the primary source of funding for Co-operative Education. Other funding sources outside of the fee are used for specific projects (e.g., Co-op for Community funding student salaries to work at non-profit organizations).

Our priority is to keep the co-op fee as low as we can, while still offering you valuable service and responsibly managing our costs.

Throughout the Co-operative Education unit, we have worked to reduce our costs. However, like most things in our current economy, the cost of securing co-op jobs and running the Co-operative Education program has increased significantly.

We are committed to being transparent and providing accurate and up-to-date information about your co-op fee and our cost-saving measures. If you have questions about your co-op fee, please contact our co-op student experience team.

The co-op fee amount for 2025/2026 is $865. This amount represents a $79, or ten percent (10%) increase, from 2024/2025. Co-operative Education determined this amount using our annual financial analysis and fee-setting process which includes student consultations. 

Previous increases:

• 2024/2025 - $30 or 4%
• 2023/2024 - $11 or 1.5%
• 2022/2023 - $6 or 0.8%
• 2021/2022 - $5 or 0.7%

The work term report marking fee assessed in your tuition on Quest is separate from the co-op fee. Work reports are defined and marked by each faculty and Co-operative Education does not receive this fee.

Unfortunately, there have been significant economic downturns for many of the industries that typically hire our students (i.e. tech, higher ed) and an overall decline in work-integrated learning opportunities. At the same time, funding like the Student Work Placement Program (SWPP) is no longer available to universities to hire co-op students, significantly impacting the number of co-op job opportunities. Although these factors are outside of our control, Co-operative Education continuously works on improvements, including new job boards to encourage more employers to hire and other job development efforts. The Co-op Student Experience Survey and student advisory groups help to drive our priorities. We’re working together with students to improve the co-op program, the jobs available, and your experience in co-op.