Now if there’s one thing about Waterloo you’ve heard about – it’s the co-op program here. Waterloo has the largest post-secondary co-op placement program in the country, and it’s often the reason why so many students choose Waterloo over other university programs – I know that’s why I wound up here! Although everyone’s co-op experience varies greatly, here are some tips and tricks I’ve gathered over my time here.
Starting out in the co-op system can be a really intimidating experience, but that’s ok! During your first round of applications, you and your classmates will be (for the most part) applying to your very first engineering-related jobs. It’s a pretty daunting task! I know when I graduated from high school, I had worked at a Second Cup making lattes, and had a summer of work at a summer camp teaching kids how to rollerblade. Needless to say, when I was applying to research jobs in environmental and pharmaceutical fields, I had NO relevant experience. If you can relate to this, no need to worry, there are tons of resources that can help you!
When you first apply for a co-op job will depend if you are in a 4-stream or an 8-stream class. If you’re in an 8-stream class, you’ll be applying for jobs in the Winter term and be working next Summer. If you’re in 4-stream, hold on to your hats because you’ll be applying for jobs in a few weeks! First step to getting a great job: a killer resume. In your concepts class, they’ll usually cover some basics regarding how to put together a good resume and how to upload it to our online job matching system; Jobmine. I’d recommend spending a little more time on it beyond your class though. The Engineering Society runs resume critiques the week before applications open, and it’s a great opportunity to get experienced upper years to check out your resume and give you some job hunting tips. Check out the Engineering Society website for more information about this awesome service.
The next big step in the whole process: the interview. There are lots of different schools of thought on how to interview well, but my rule is always dress well, make sure you don’t have bad breath, and be yourself! Interviews are always a lot easier when you’re relaxed, and your interviewers get a better idea of the type of person you are. If it’s been a while since your most recent interview, check out the Engineering Society’s interview skills workshop to brush up!
Finally, the last piece of advice I can give is to take chances when it comes to co-op. If I could have changed anything about my co-op experience, I would have been more willing to try working in a new city earlier on. It wasn’t until my third year that I left Ontario to work in Calgary, Alberta, and I loved every second of it! Moving to a new city where you don’t really know anyone, or going after a new job in a different field can be really intimidating, but it can also lead to an unforgettable experience. This is the only time when you can truly sample jobs and cities on a 4-month basis, so why not be daring and try something new?
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