In the co-operative system of study, the student in an Honours academic plan is enabled to integrate work with academics. For a detailed description, see Co-operative Education & Career Action. Beginning in the second year, the co-op student ordinarily alternates four-month terms on campus for academic studies with four months off campus for practical work experience in business, industry, or government.
In order to be eligible to receive a co-op designation at the time of graduation, students in Bachelor of Arts (BA) co-op plans are required to complete:
- A minimum of four work terms beyond the 2A level,
- A minimum of four online professional development (PD) courses, and
- A minimum of four work-term reports.
Professional Development (PD) Courses
PD courses are intended to enhance the professional development of the student and assist in integrating their academic and work-term experiences. With the exception of PD 1, students are expected to take the courses while on their co-op work terms. The required schedule for completing the PD courses is as follows:
- PD 1 must be taken in the term prior to the first work term.
- PD 2 must be taken during the first work term.
- Two additional PD courses of the student's choice should be taken in the second and third work terms.
Work-Term Reports
The required schedule for completing work reports is as follows:
- PD 2 (which counts for credit as the student's first work-term report) must be completed by the end of the first work term.
- Work-term report 2 must be completed by the end of the second work term.
- Work-term report 3 must be completed by the end of the third work term.
- Work-term report 4 must be completed by the end of the fourth work term.
With the exception of PD 2, which is submitted online, work-term reports must be submitted to the student's honours discipline program; for example, Honours French students submit their work-term reports to the Department of French Studies. Students must submit co-op work-term reports by no later than the tenth day of classes in the academic term following the co-op work term for which the work report was prepared. Information regarding work-report topics and guidelines is obtained at the faculty level.
BA Co-op Plans
The following BA co-op plans are offered:
- Arts and Business Co-op
The Arts and Business co-operative system of study combines an Honours plan in any Honours discipline in Arts (except Mathematical Economics; and plans offered by the School of Accounting and Finance) with the Arts and Business group of courses. The Arts and Business courses are intended to provide the student with a basic and practical general education and with skills appropriate to a wide range of careers. See the Arts and Business Co-op and Regular section and the appropriate discipline section for details.
- Departmental Co-op
- Department of Economics: Honours Economics; Honours Mathematical Economics
- Department of English Language and Literature: Honours English - Literature; Literature and Rhetoric; or Rhetoric and Professional Writing
- Department of Political Science: Honours Political Science
- Department of Psychology: Honours Psychology
- Department of Sociology and Legal Studies: Honours Sociology
Notes
- Co-operative plans are open only to full-time students.
- Students transferring from other faculties with more than two successfully completed work terms are not eligible to pursue co-op programs in the Faculty of Arts.
- Students seeking to complete a BA in the Faculty of Arts as a second degree having already completed a bachelor's degree with co-op in any discipline at the University of Waterloo will only be considered for admission to a non-co-op program.