Students prep for jobs with more work experience opportunities
December 20, 2021
Students throughout British Columbia will have access to as many as 3,000 new co-op and work integrated learning (WIL) opportunities in 2021-22, thanks to new funding and a focus on bolstering placements affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacted youth employment prospects, including reducing the number of co-op and work integrated learning placements available to students. We are investing in these opportunities to help students access the hands-on experiences they need to launch their careers,” said Anne Kang, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Training. “Helping employers throughout the province offer co-op and work-integrated learning opportunities is good news for business and great news for students.”
The Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Training is investing $5.5 million in one-time funding to expand co-ops and WIL programs. In total, 46 projects at all 25 public post-secondary institutions in B.C. are being supported, including:
UBC-Okanagan, University of Northern BC and Thompson Rivers University will build on work underway to support employers in Interior and northern communities to hire students for 130 WIL placements.
Emily Carr University of Art + Design will create 30 WIL placements for students to work with employers in Vancouver’s False Creek Flats and Downtown Eastside.
University of Victoria will create 60 or more co-op work terms for students with disabilities who face great challenges in finding and retaining placements.
Coast Mountain College and College of New Caledonia will create more than 100 WIL placements in partnership with local chambers of commerce to create the Connecting the North: Northern WIL Hub Project.
