Regulations

The academic calendar specifies that students in the Faculty of Science are allowed to take a maximum of one course (3 credit hours) during a work term (p. 293 of the 2023-2024 Undergraduate Calendar). This is the limit and it cannot be exceeded for any reason.

Once admitted to the co-operative education program, students are expected to familiarize themselves with the Co-op Student Handbook and the requirements of the program found in the University of Regina Undergraduate Calendar. The Co-op Student Handboook is available at Career Centre / Co-operative Education & Internships / For Current Students / Student Handbook. The information below is provided to supplement the handbook and calendar because it applies only to Computer Science Co-op students.

1) Academic Plan - This is a brief outline prepared by the students that details how they plan on progressing through their remaining degree requirements, semester by semester. It is useful in determining if and when academic and work placements should be approved. Students should maintain an up-to-date copy of their academic plans at all times; it may be requested by the department's Undergraduate Co-op Coordinator at any time. Academic plans should forecast at least the next 2 full years of the student's program, after the current semester. Students should take into account when required courses are most commonly offered when constructing their plans to ensure their viability.

The Academic Plan should look something like:

Student Name and Student ID

I have ______ courses and/or _______ credit hours remaining to complete my _______ 
(insert major, e.g., B.Sc. in CS, B.Sc. in CS (Business Concentration), B.Sc. (Honours) in CS, 
B.Sc. in SSD, combined B.Sc. in CS & Math, or combined B.Sc. (Honours) in CS & Math) program. 
Over the next 2 years I plan to take the following academic courses and work placements:

Spring/Summer 20XX - CS XXX, Math XXX, Arts/Fine Arts elective, natural science;

Fall 20XX - Work term # _______;

Winter 20XX - CS XXX, CS XXX, Open/Any Faculty elective, ENGL 100;

and so on ...

2) Double Work Terms - A double work term is a convention commonly used to describe two consecutive work placements, e.g., CS 052 taken 20XX20 and then immediately followed by CS 053 in 20XX30. Students are allowed at most one double work term during their studies in Computer Science. All remaining work terms must be preceded and followed by academic terms. Double work terms must be approved by the department's Co-op Academic Cooordinator prior to registration.

If an employer wishes to extend one work term into two to create a double work term, the student needs to fill out and sign a Request for Double Work Term form. The student must ensure that reasons are given for the request. The reasons should be supplied by the employer and it is preferable if the employer fills out the reasons on the form. The signature of the department's Co-op Academic Coordinator is required on this form. The form and an up-to-date Academic Plan should be submitted as soon as possible and certainly before the end of the first two weeks of the second term of the double work term. The request is usually approved if it fits with the student's academic schedule, as described in the accompanying Academic Plan.

3) Registration - Once a work placement with an employer has been found and arranged in consultation with the Co-operative Education office, a student can register for the appropriate work term. Registration for work terms other than CS 051, such as CS 052, CS 053, can be done online through UR Self Service in the same manner as registering for any other credit or non-credit class.

CS 051 has a restriction placed on it that prevents registration. This restriction allows the student's academic unit (Faculty, Department, or Federated College) to verify that the student is indeed accepted into the co-operative education program and has found suitable employment. When employment is found, the Co-op office will notify the student's academic unit directly so that the student can be granted permission to register. Upon this notification, the academic unit will update the student's program and provide an override in the system that will now allow the student to register in CS 051 via UR Self Service.

IMPORTANT: Once registered, students cannot drop/withdraw from a co-op term themselves through UR Self Service. Instead students must contact the Faculty of Science or the Department of Computer Science to fill out an 'Adjustment of Fees and Grades' form.

4) Confidential Reports - During the process of constructing their work term reports, students are encouraged to pass their ideas and drafts by their employers for feedback. At this point an employer might express concern that the proposed topic or some information shared in the report is of a proprietary nature and must remain internal to the organization (hence confidential). There are three options in these circumstances:

  • The student chooses a new topic or material for the report that will not expose the proprietary information. This is the recommended course of action.

  • The employer requests non-disclosure of the report from the department's Co-op Academic Coordinator. Such a request is required at least six (6) weeks in advance of the end of the work term. If the request is approved, only one faculty member of the Department of Computer Science is made privy to the report. The employer is provided with that member's name and contact information. The member looks at the report only for evaluation purposes and then ensures the report is either destroyed or returned to the employer for safe keeping. This method ensures that confidentiality of proprietary information is maintained, while allowing the Department of Computer Science to evaluate the student's report writing skills and make recommendations needed for subsequent reports.

  • The employer requests full confidentiality of the report from the department's Co-op Academic Coordinator. Such a request is required at least six (6) weeks in advance of the end of the work term. If the request is approved, the student writes the report in the same manner as any other co-op report. When the report is completed, it is submitted to the employer instead of the Department of Computer Science.

    The employer grades the paper on a pass/fail basis and discusses it with the student. The discussion can occur verbally or in writing. The discussion should highlight the strengths as well as the areas for improvement of the report.

    NOTE: Students are only permitted one (1) confidential work term report during their Computer Science Co-op program. Confidential reports are not be permitted for double work terms under any circumstance.