Co-operative Education & Workplace Partnerships

Rising Star student accelerates success through automotive experience

Rising Star electrical engineering student Lucas PineoUWindsor Summer 2025 Co-op/Internship Rising Star Award winner, Lucas Pineo, built technical expertise, tackled complex challenges and drove real change during his co-op at Ford Motor Company. (VICTOR ROMAO/University of Windsor)

By Victor Romao

Turning classroom knowledge into real-world impact is the goal of every graduate — and for third-year electrical engineering student Lucas Pineo, that dream became reality. 

Through a 16-week co-op at Ford Motor Company, Pineo gained hands-on experience that went far beyond textbooks. 

“My experience with Ford was phenomenal,” he said. 

“I was able to meet and work with professionals, which helped me better understand what I want to do in the future.” 

Big City, Big Opportunity: UWindsor Student’s Co-op Journey to Amazon Toronto

Fourth-year computer science student Matthew MuscedereUniversity of Windsor computer science student Matthew Muscedere during his co-op placement at Amazon’s YYZ18 location in Toronto. (Image courtesy of Matthew Muscedere)

By Victor Romao

Curiosity, drive and a passion for innovation led Matthew Muscedere to a summer co-op placement at Amazon’s Toronto tech hub, where he helped improve the performance of a key cloud-based system by more than 90 per cent.

Engineering student honoured with Co-op’s Rising Star Award

Cameron AndersonCameron Anderson, a third-year mechanical engineering student, earned a Rising Star Award for his contributions during a co-op placement at Stellantis’ Automotive Research and Development Centre. (PETER MARVAL/University of Windsor)

By Peter Marval

“What career am I getting myself into?” was the question on Cameron Anderson’s mind when he decided to pursue co-op.

Anderson said he crafted a plan to work at different placements to gain a broad understanding of what it’s like to work as an engineer.

The third-year mechanical engineering student was one of six honoured with the Rising Star Award, which recognizes students who excel during their co-op placements, as selected by the University of Windsor’s Co-operative Education and Workplace Partnerships office.