When post-secondary students get the chance to learn on the job, they build career skills, gain real-world experience and forge the connections that help them get great jobs when they graduate.

“Canada’s continued prosperity depends on young Canadians getting the education and experience they need to succeed. Young Canadians are talented, ambitious and hard-working; however, making the transition to the workforce can be difficult. When young people gain valuable on-the-job experience, they are better equipped to succeed in the workplace, and that is fundamental to growing our economy and strengthening our middle class for years to come. That is why our government is proud to support the work of the Business/Higher Education Roundtable.”
– The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development

“Our government is working to build a skilled labour force in Canada through work-integrated learning. By creating stronger partnerships between business and universities, colleges and polytechnics, we are ensuring employers have the talented people they need and we are setting young Canadians up to succeed in the workforce.”
– Jennifer O’Connell, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance (Youth Economic Opportunities)

“At the Business/Higher Education Roundtable, we know how vital skilled young people are to Canada’s continued global competitiveness. The commitments made by the Government of Canada recognize that investing in work-integrated learning is a smart move that reaps major rewards: students get hands-on, relevant experience while they learn; employers gain access to the skills and innovation mindset of young talent; and post-secondary institutions build stronger connections with industry and their broader communities.”
– Val Walker, Executive Director, Business/Higher Education Roundtable

• Budget 2019 proposed to:

  • support the creation of up to 20,000 new student work placements per year by 2021–22 by investing $631.2 million over five years to expand the Student Work Placement Program;
  • support the creation of an additional 20,000 work-integrated learning opportunities per year by 2023–24, through partnerships with innovative businesses, by investing $150 million over four years; and
  • support the Business/Higher Education Roundtable to act as a convener to bring together key partners to further strengthen the work-integrated learning environment and create an additional 44,000 student work placements per year by 2021–22, through an investment of $17 million over three years.

• Originally launched in 2017, the Student Work Placement Program was already delivering:

  • up to 10,000 paid student work placements in science, technology, engineering and math, as well as business fields, helping build stronger partnerships between employers, polytechnics, universities and colleges, through an investment of $73 million over four years (Budget 2016);
  • up to 1,000 student work placements in the field of cyber security, as part of the National Cyber Security Strategy, through an investment of $8.3 million (Budget 2018); and
  • up to 500 new student work placements in the field of artificial intelligence through an investment of $3 million over three years.

• Under the Student Work Placement Program:

  • 3,600 student work placements have been created to date, with 48% of them for first-year students and students from under-represented groups; and
  • 1,253 employers—88% of which were small and medium-sized enterprises—and over 130 post-secondary education institutions have participated to offer student work placements across Canada.

Associated links

• Business/Higher Education Roundtable
• Student Work Placement Program

Dani Keenan
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development
343-291-1710

Media Relations
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada
343-291-1777
ic.mediarelations-mediasrelations.ic@canada.ca

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