Co-op Program

How to Hire Students

Year-Round Recruitment

Co-op Education differs from usual university programs in that students are available for work year-round rather than only during the summer. Our program operates on a tri-semester system, with three work terms per year, each four months long (although double work terms can be arranged). Each semester there are two rounds of hiring: the Match, and Direct Offer.

Hiring in the First Round -- The Match

We use a computerized matching program to place students with employers. The match process lets employers select candidates for interviews from among all students eligible for Co-op employment.

Here's how this time-sensitive process works:

• You submit a job description for the position(s) you want to fill. All job descriptions, categorized by work term level and discipline, are made available to all students.
• On Resume Day, students submit their applications for the positions they want. We collect, bundle, and send you the resumes.
• You screen the resumes and let us know which students you want to interview.
• We set up the interviews and provide the interview space. Interviews may be conducted in person or by telephone.
• You interview selected candidates and decide which ones you'd like to hire.
• You then rank your preferred students; the students do the same for their preferred jobs. And the computer does the rest, resulting in an automatic offer and acceptance by you and the student.

If the Match process doesn’t work for you, the recruitment process continues to the Second Round.

Hiring in the Second Round -- Direct Offer
After the First Round Match process, a direct offer-acceptance system is used. You submit job descriptions, which we post continually. Interested students will apply, and we will send the resumes to you and set up the interviews.

You make employment offers at your convenience on a first-come, first-serve basis. This Second Round process continues until all or most of the students are placed.