Hire a co-op student anytime!
Our co-op program runs year-round. So, our students are always available to hire for work terms that last four or eight months. We’ll help you find the right student for your organization on your recruiting timeline. This table outlines the typical hiring dates for each work term:
| Co-op work terms: | When to hire: |
|---|---|
| Winter 2025 (January 6 - April 25, 2025) | September - December 2024 |
| Spring 2025 (May 5 - August 22, 2025) | January - April 2025 |
| Fall 2025 (September 2 - December 19, 2025) | May - August 2025 |
About our co-op hiring cycles
The easiest way to hire a co-op student is to post a job through our recruitment system, WaterlooWorks. Post your job on the Full-Cycle Service job board to follow our hiring cycles. A hiring cycle refers to the time allocated for posting your job, reviewing applications, interviewing students, ranking candidates and matching with a student.
Cycles 1-2:
- Longer cycles of 3-4 weeks with defined dates to post jobs, conduct interviews and rank students.
- On the final days of cycles 1-2, employers are matched with students based on how they ranked each other.
- Designed to give employers and students more time for decision-making, as they can consider multiple options when ranking.
Cycles 3-6:
- Shorter cycles where employers can post jobs daily. These cycles are designed for speed and flexibility with all the steps happening within a few days.
- Three business days after you post your job, applications are ready for review. You can schedule interviews Tuesdays to Thursdays. Matches happen on Fridays.
Direct offer phase:
- After cycles 1-6, you can continue to hire by making direct offers to students.
- In this direct offer phase, you can post jobs on WaterlooWorks and arrange interviews on your own.
- The rank/match process is not used. Contact your service team for support.
Full-Cycle Service co-op hiring dates
Architecture Full-Cycle Service co-op hiring dates
Pharmacy Full-Cycle Service co-op hiring dates
Employer-Student Direct co-op hiring dates
Use the Employer-Student Direct job board to hire co-op students flexibly outside of Waterloo’s hiring cycles.
- Post jobs for any term, even in advance (not limited to the upcoming term).
- Jobs are posted for two weeks (unless otherwise specified) and applications are not collected in WaterlooWorks.
- Contact students directly to schedule and host interviews (not in WaterlooWorks).
- Manage offers directly with students.
- Contact your service team if a student accepts your offer. Students need to submit a form for co-op credit.
- Some students may not be available based on their academic schedules.
Graduating students and alumni hiring dates
- Employers can recruit Waterloo alumni year-round.
- Use the Graduating and Full-Time job board on WaterlooWorks.
- WaterlooWorks will keep jobs posted for two weeks. Candidates will apply and interview directly with the employer.
- Interview timelines in winter 2025: January 6 - April 4, 2025
- Interview timelines in spring 2025: May 5 - July 30, 2025
Contract, part-time and volunteer hiring dates
- Employers can recruit Waterloo students year-round for contract, part-time, volunteer and summer positions.
- Use the Contract, Part-Time and Volunteer job board on WaterlooWorks.
- WaterlooWorks will keep jobs posted for two weeks. Candidates will apply and interview directly with the employer.