Co‑op Program Fees
Co-operative Education is not a job placement program, it is a formalized educational strategy that offers exceptional learning opportunities that must be planned, developed, coordinated, tracked, monitored and graded. The true cost of delivering this program is approximately $1200 per work term, even when students find their own employment. To offset a portion of these costs there are two co-op fees.
Co-op Orientation Course Fee
Students must pay a one-time fee of $309 for the mandatory Co-op Orientation Course; an admission requirement for the co-op program.
Co-op Program Fee
A program fee of $515 is assessed for each four-month work term. Because this is a program fee, not a placement fee, it is assessed if you find your own job and it is non-refundable if do not find a job. If you are not doing a scheduled work term notify the Co-op Office before the start of the job competition to avoid the charge.
Computer Science students: Please note that your faculty applies an additional $334 fee per work term, as Computer Science work terms are graded and count towards an elective.
What do co-op fees pay for?
Co-op fees only cover about 50% of the actual cost of operating the co-op program. While the university absorbs much of the cost of co-op, a portion is covered by the co-op fee.
The co-op fee offsets the costs of delivering the co-op program, including:
- Developing co-op job opportunities and maintaining employer relationships
- Organizing and scheduling job interviews
- Designing and delivering courses to prepare students for success in their job search, including job search training, career advising and work term preparation
- Co-op job search services, including résumé critiques, practice interviews and advising
- Curriculum to prepare students for success on their work term, including co-op student monitoring and worksite visits
- Interacting with faculty and other internal university departments to maintain and develop regulations and processes.
- Validating and monitoring student jobs to ensure high quality co-op learning opportunities
- Administering and maintaining the co-op information management systems.
Our co-op fee remains one of the lowest in the country.
Work term fees across Canada
| Co-op Program | Fee per work term | Min. total work term fee | # of work terms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Memorial | $ 323 | $ 1938 | 6 |
| Concordia | n/a | $ 1480 | 3 |
| Dalhousie SITE Co-op | $ 515 | $ 1545 | 3 or 4 |
| UNBC | $ 472 | $ 1,416 | 3 |
| UBC | $ 688 | $ 3667 | 5 |
| U Victoria | $ 636 | $ 2544 | 4 |
| Simon Fraser | $ 692 | $ 2076 | 3 |
| U of Regina | $ 723 | $ 2892 | 4 |
| Wilfred Laurier | $ 612 | $ 1836 | 3 |
| Waterloo | $ 641 | $ 3846 | 6 |
| UNB | $ 730 | $ 2920 | 4 |
| U of Alberta | $ 900-1000 | $ 4750 | 5 |
| U of Ottawa | $ 650 | $ 3250 | 4 |
| Dal Commerce | $ 996 | $ 2989 | 3 |
| MSVU | $ 1143 | $ 3429 | 3 |
Updated February 5, 2018
When is the co-op fee added to my account?
For Summer Work Terms: The Co-op fees are added to your student account 2 weeks before the start of your summer work term and you will be notified by email one week before the fee is added in April.
For Fall/Winter Work Terms: The Co-op fees are added to your account when you register for your work term course.
- Students who are not academically eligible for the work term should notify the Co-op Office to avoid being charged the fee. Paying the fee does not constitute acceptance into the co-op program.
Self-found co-op jobs
All co-op students must pay the same co-op fee. Students who find their own co-op jobs still participate in co-op curriculum, use co-op services to monitor work term progress, obtain academic credits for their work terms, and ultimately graduate with the co-op degree designation.
The co-op fee is non-refundable
Paying your co-op fee does not guarantee a co-op job, just as paying your regular tuition does not guarantee you will pass your courses. Co-op success is tied directly to the amount of work you put into it. Almost all students who don't get a co-op job did not apply to all job postings or were not competitive enough in the job market. The Co-op Office cannot control these factors, and the cost of running the co-op program doesn’t change because a student doesn't get a job.