Co-op Work Term Requirements
To maintain our high standards for quality work term experiences, we require that co-op roles meet a specific set of requirements in terms of duration, pay, and academic alignment to receive credit for a work term.
· Minimum Criteria for Co-op Work Terms
· Searching for co-op positions outside of CSM
· International work terms
If you’re independently searching for a work term that doesn’t meet one or more aspects of the regular work term criteria below, please speak to your Work Term Engagement Coordinator. We review each job opportunity on a case-by-case basis, so we may be able to discuss options depending on your situation and rationale.
Minimum Criteria for Co-op Work Terms
Criteria |
Regular co-op work term requirements |
Position |
|
Work Term Duration |
|
Number of Hours |
|
Pay |
|
Location |
Positions can be in-person within Toronto, across Canada, or internationally
|
International Students |
If you're an international visa student, any work completed for a co-op credit in Canada must be done on a co-op work permit. |
Supervisor |
You must not be supervised by a family member or another student. You can work for a family business, as long as your supervisor is not a family member. |
Performance Evaluations |
Your supervisor must participate in an in-person or online/phone midterm site visit and submit Work Term Performance Evaluations at the mid-point and end of your work term. |
Minimum of Required Work Terms to Graduate
In order to graduate, undergraduate co-op students must complete a minimum of 2 or 3 work terms (depending on your academic program’s study/work sequence).
With the work term requirements, the following options are possible:
Work Term Duration |
Will be counted as: |
| 4 months | 1 work term |
| 8 months | 2 work terms |
| 12 months | 3 work terms |
Searching for Co-op Positions Outside of CSM
From time to time, opportunities arise that fall outside of our traditional job seeking cycles. To share these with you, we’ve created an additional job board on the UTSC intranet where we’ll post various positions you can apply to. To access this job board and to view opportunities, log onto the Intranet (intranet.utsc.utoronto.ca) and you will see Arts & Science Co-op Job Board on the column on the left.
Here’s a summary of other sources that you can access for work term postings.
| Platform | Type of Role | Audience | Additional steps to have a role count as a work term |
| CSM | Co-op Approved roles | All current seeking students |
None! These roles are all pre-approved by our Business Development Team |
| Co-op Intranet |
Co-op approved out-of-cycle roles (i.e. posted now, but not beginning until the following year) · Possible co-op jobs hiring for the next semester |
All Arts & Science Co-op Students |
Any roles that you find on a platform/job board other than CSM during your seeking semester is treated as an external job search.
Submit a Request for Work Term Approval Form should you secure any roles through a job board other than CSM, and want to have this count as a co-op work term.
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| CLNx | |||
| Other Job Boards |
International Work Terms & University of Toronto Travel Policy The Government of Canada advises against all non-essential travel outside of Canada. Accordingly, the University is also advising all members of its community to avoid all non-essential travel at this time. Please consult the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 travel advisory website for more information on international travel. As of May 25, 2020, the University of Toronto has cancelled future University activity to international locations for all students until December 31, 2020. Work terms outside of Canada have always been assessed based on the risk level published by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) travel advisories, in conjunction with any overall directives from our central University leadership. When the GAC risk level for a country is listed as high ("Avoid non-essential travel" or "Avoid all travel") prior to the start of a work term, the University will not approve a work term for co-op credit. This applies to all individuals, regardless of citizenship or intended destination. International students: if you’re currently in your home country and want to complete your work term there, please contact your Work Term Engagement Coordinator to discuss.
Given U of T’s decision to suspend all University-related travel and GAC’s listing of all countries as high risk, we are required to follow that direction and can’t approve work terms outside of Canada for credit for the Summer 2020 or Fall 2020 terms.
Since we can’t confidently predict when this will change, we advise you to prioritize roles that can be completed from Canada. Work terms with employers based outside of Canada—including work terms you find on your own—can still be approved for co-op credit if employers can relocate you to their Canadian office or allow you to legally work remotely from within Canada.
Of course, you can still choose to work outside Canada, but you will not receive a co-op credit from the University since it goes against the University’s current policies.