Student Bridging

Student bridging is an informal term that developed under the previous legislative and policy framework and referred to the appointment of a person who had been employed in the federal public service through 1 of 3 Government of Canada student programs: the Federal Student Work Experience Program or FSWEP, the Post-Secondary Co-op/Internship Program or COOP, or the Research Affiliate Program or RAP.

Bridging someone who worked in a federal department or agency before graduating continues to be a staffing option. There is no specific mechanism in the Public Service Employment Act or the Public Service Commission’s Appointment Policy for student bridging. These appointments are subject to the Public Service Employment Act, the Public Service Commission’s Appointment Framework, the organizational staffing framework, and any deputy head direction.

There are no legislative or policy requirements that limit a deputy head’s discretion in establishing timeframes related to student and graduate hiring. Deputy heads can establish timeframes which take into account factors such as their operational and workforce needs, renewal objectives and the intent of student and graduate hiring.  

A student may be offered a term or indeterminate appointment before they have completed their studies. If they meet the other qualifications, their appointment could be conditional on completion of their studies. Consult Conditional Offers for guidance on the topic.

Yes. As with all appointments, the hiring manager determines the depth and breadth of the qualifications required for the position depending on what is relevant to their organizational and operational needs. The nature of the experience gained as a student in any organization can be considered against the job requirements and the sub-delegated manager’s needs, along with the organizational staffing framework, including any deputy head direction on student and graduate hiring.

Yes. Bridging is not restricted to persons who have completed one or more work terms in the Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP), the Post-Secondary Co-op/Internship Program (COOP), or the Research Affiliate Program (RAP). While student work experience obtained under one of these student employment programs is valuable, so is experience gained from other types of employment in the public service and in separate organizations that are not subject to Treasury Board policies. Work experience gained in various ways can develop skills needed in the public service. Sub-delegated managers will determine the relevance of a student’s or graduate’s work experience based on their operational needs, and in alignment with their organizational staffing framework.

Yes. A deputy head may decide to appoint a qualified person based on the experience they obtained through student employment, regardless of their current employment status.

Section 5 of the Student Employment Programs Participants Regulations allows students employed under one of the Government of Canada’s student employment programs to apply to advertised internal appointment processes, as long as they are specifically included in the area of selection. They must also meet any other area of selection criteria and demonstrate that they will be able to complete their study program within the timeframe indicated in the advertisement.

Students who are employed through a term appointment and not under a student employment program may apply to advertised internal appointment processes when they are in the area of selection. Students employed on a casual basis are not eligible to apply to advertised internal appointment processes.

In most cases, the appointment of a person upon graduation to a term or indeterminate position will be a non-advertised appointment. An exception to this is advertised internal appointment processes which are open to students pursuant to section 5 of the Student Employment Programs Participants Regulations.