Criteria for approval
The Post-Secondary Co-operative Education and Internship Program (CO-OP/Internship) is specifically designed to provide post-secondary students with assignments related to their field of study and offer them the opportunity to use their academic knowledge in an actual work setting.
Academic institutions play an important role in the placement of students under this program. The partnership between the hiring organization, the academic institution and the student is a mandatory and key element of the CO-OP/Internship program.
Criteria
The Public Service Commission (PSC) approves co-operative education and internship programs that satisfy the following criteria:
- The academic program requires the successful completion of the student's work term(s) or internship as a condition of graduation. Additionally, where a program encompasses both mandatory and optional work terms, only those mandatory for graduation may be completed in the Public Service of Canada;
- Students registered in the CO-OP/Internship program must have full-time student status, as defined by the educational institution at which they are enrolled;
- Generally, CO-OP work terms are four months (16 weeks) in duration and internships vary between four and 18 months; and
- There is no cost to be paid by federal organizations to educational institutions (nor vice versa) for the referral or hiring of students participating in post-secondary CO-OP/Internship programs.
In order to satisfy the above-mentioned criteria, institutions wishing to have a CO-OP/Internship program approved by the PSC are asked to forward documentation that:
- Indicates that the CO-OP/Internship program has been formally approved by the proper authorities (e.g. the university Senate or the Dean of the faculty) within the educational institution (a copy of a letter approving the program or an official course calendar or other promotional material would satisfy this requirement);
- Outlines the requirements to be fulfilled in order for a student to graduate from the CO-OP/Internship program;
- Clearly indicates the number of mandatory work terms that must be completed as a condition of graduation; and
- Identifies the institution's contact person for each program being presented for approval.
Academic institutions that wish to have their programs approved are invited to inform the PSC by email, via the following address: cfp.coop.psc@cfp-psc.gc.ca.
Moreover, academic institutions are requested to inform the PSC of any modifications to any information related to a program that has already been approved. This may be done by sending an email to: cfp.coop.psc@cfp-psc.gc.ca.
Guidelines
Program approval
- The Public Service Commission (PSC) approves post-secondary CO-OP/Internship programs that satisfy certain established criteria.
- The approved programs can be viewed on this Web site.