Skip to the content of the web site.

Employers

We're redesigning our website! Please take a survey to let us know what you need from the UW site.

We’re committed to co-op

Waterloo has the largest post-secondary co-operative education program in the world.

Co-op integrates academic learning and work experience. Because Waterloo is a research-intensive university with strong links to business and industry, what we teach is relevant.

We give our students formal academic credit for their co-op work terms, reflecting the importance of co-op in the UW curriculum.

Our employers are valued partners

Co-operative Education & Career Services (CECS) prizes strong and close relationships with employers. We listen to our employers’ comments on how we conduct our business, with an eye to further enhancing those relationships.

Our upgraded online administrative system improves communication between students and employers and more efficiently processes data, monitors conditions, and forecasts trends.

We have a dedicated building

Co-operative Education & Career Services (CECS) has its own custom-designed 45,500-square-foot building, the William M. Tatham Centre for Co-operative Education & Career Services, with

  • 100 in-person interview rooms
  • 14 telephone interview rooms
  • group interview space
  • teleconferencing room
  • employers’ lounge
  • student change rooms with lockers

Our students are workplace-ready

Our students accumulate up to six four-month paid work terms as part of their undergraduate degrees. The alternation of academics and work means they are available for employment throughout the year.

All co-op students complete workplace-related professional development courses that focus on “soft” skills not normally covered in the classroom, such as

  • critical analysis
  • interpersonal communication
  • professional ethics

Employers who hire UW co-op students will be first in line for permanent recruits, once students have graduated. Think of a work term as a four-month, in-depth job interview, the perfect way to evaluate potential future employees.

“From their first moment on campus, some of the brightest minds in the country are empowered not just to seek knowledge, but to apply it. A University of Waterloo education blends academic studies with the world of work, and students and employers benefit equally."

"As an employer, you provide the challenge. We’ll provide the talent to meet it. In this turbulent economy, hiring co-op provides a flexible opportunity to use the knowledge and skills of the most work-ready students in Canada.”

— Peggy Jarvie, CECS executive director

We encourage entrepreneurs

UW Enterprise Services is an innovative program aimed at enterprising undergrads. Sponsored by UW's Centre for Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology, the program provides help and business advice to students who want to develop and launch their own businesses, sometimes for co-op credit. Start-up funds may be available to qualifying students. Enterprise Services has helped launch 100 new business ventures since 1999.