Co-operative Opportunities

Learning Beyond The Classroom

The Co-operative Education program provides you with the opportunity to take your education beyond the classroom, and into the real world of business. Your paid co-op work semesters will enable you to apply the knowledge you gained in class to practical, hands-on, paid work experience. You’ll learn by doing and make valuable business contacts in the process. Co-op jobs are available with firms within Ontario – predominantly in the GTA, Windsor and Ottawa – with international work opportunities as a possibility.

Co-op Programs and Requirements

The Odette School of Business currently offers two co-op programs at the undergraduate level:

• Bachelor of Commerce (Honours Business Administration) Co-op
• Bachelor of Commerce (Honours Business Administration and Computer Science) Co-op

You can apply to these programs directly out of secondary school. No separate application is necessary and admission will be based on academic achievement. Alternatively, you may choose to apply in September during your second year of studies by submitting an application and resume to the Centre for Career Education. Admission at this point will be based on academic achievement, previous volunteer and paid work experience, and, in some cases, an interview.

In addition to the general undergraduate program requirements, you must maintain full-time academic status and be held to a higher academic standard to remain in this program.

A Balanced Structure

Your co-op work semesters will allow you to complete your four-year Honours Degree while gaining the equivalent of one year of career-related work experience. By combining semesters of classroom study with semesters of full-time paid employment in career-related positions, you’ll have the best of both worlds as you apply your formal learning to the workplace, and vice-versa. The typical work-study sequence is as follows:

Year 1

Fall - Study, Winter - Study, Summer - Off

Year 2

Fall - Study, Winter - Study, Summer - Work

Year 3

Fall - Study, Winter - Work, Summer - Study

Year 4

Fall - Work, Winter - Study, Summer - Study

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