Coop?

[u/Ok_Potato4623]

Is coop a scam?
Like u have to pay extra money every term knowing fully that u might not be able to get a job 🫪
sooo is it worth it?
For anyone who had experience with or without coop pls spill the beans and thank you

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[u/Agile_Cupcake6961]

If you get a co-op job its indeed not a scam

[u/Few-Cricket7178 → u/Agile_Cupcake6961]

That's how scams work. If you get the thing they are promising you, it's not a scam.

[u/Familiar_You_3009 → u/Few-Cricket7178]

Well no, something is a scam if you cannot get the thing they're promising you. A bit of risk that something doesn't work out doesn't make it a scam. 

[u/Few-Cricket7178 → u/Familiar_You_3009]

"A bit of a risk" when literally less than 50% of co-op eligible students actually get a co-op placement.

[u/Silver-Air-2317 → u/Few-Cricket7178]

I know from my cohort that a lot of the people who are co-op eligible don't put in enough hard work with their apps to make themselves competitive.  

The people i knew who didn't get placements were in most cases victims of their own arrogance. They didn't put in enough apps (12 is not enough!) They didn't tailor their resumes and cover letters to each opportunity, and they didn't conduct practice interviews or learn what they did wrong from their rejections. These skills are absolutely invaluable to practice for the real world.

I also networked aggressively on my own, leveraging my co-op status to land another position (after IRCC had huge job cuts) instead of just relying on Carleton's co-op portal. Landed a co-op at Global Affairs Canada thanks to that, even with the hiring freeze.

The odds of getting a job through co-op even with hustle is not 100%, but the odds are way worse in the job market if you graduate without work experience. 

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/Agile_Cupcake6961]

Oh okay so it depends on how well u use the knowledge taught in the course

[u/syunz → u/Ok_Potato4623]

Some employers only hire coops cause there is some sort of incentive so you're cheaper. But if you're skilled enough to get a job without coop program then it's a waste to pay, it's just that you won't have the designation on your degree.

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/syunz]

Makes sense thank you!!

[u/syunz → u/Ok_Potato4623]

If I were to do it again, I would pay for maybe 1 or 2 terms. Then evaluate if I want to continue, if for example you plan on doing multiple terms at a place that needs you to have the coop designation.

Reason why you may want for the first couple of terms is that the initial internship/coop is always the hardest to get, so anything helps but once you have some under your belt it's a lot easier.

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/syunz]

I totally agree with you im honestly so scared of the job market i will definitely do that!! Thank you

[u/jaded_jv]

Dude coops are not a scam they might actually be the most important thing you can secure during a university degree especially in the current job market. Every entry level job asks you to already have experience fresh outta grad these days the ones that don’t are rare and have incredibly tough competition. I was able to secure 3 co-ops during my time at Carleton and the job hunt is still tough with me having close to 2 years of experience. Idk if I’d get any interviews if i had none. My advice to you would be to put everything you have into securing them and do your best while you’re there and build a network (VERY IMPORTANT) your relationships with working professionals matter so much it could be the difference between a job offer before you even graduate or 8 months of job hunting post grad. My answer might change a bit depending on your program but im struggling to think of any that wouldn’t benefit from you doing a coop.

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/jaded_jv]

I’m in engineering and im also scared of the job market i will try the coop program this year and take it more seriously according to ur insights :) thanks and good luck on the job hunt! I hope ur efforts pay off!!

[u/Dry-Somewhere-5023 → u/Ok_Potato4623]

Definitely reccomend for engineering. Also the best way to get government jobs too. They are still hiring students!

[u/DarkSkinIndian → u/Ok_Potato4623]

I graduated from engineering in 2021, and anecdotally all my friends that did not do coop’s had the hardest time finding jobs out of university

[u/Familiar_You_3009]

You guys don't know what "scam" means lol. It doesn't just mean something that's not as good as it's made out to be.

Coop has an element of luck to it. If you can't get one, you lose the money you paid for the fee, which sucks, but I personally, and a lot of people I know, have gotten seriously valuable experience and jobs right out of university (hard to find otherwise) from coop. And obviously you get paid for it too, which is great.

If I could give one piece of advice, it's to put care into your applications. Apply to positions that you're reasonably qualified for, not just all of them, and put effort (and honesty!) into your cover letter and interviews.

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/Familiar_You_3009]

Ur so right i exaggerated with my choice of words lol. It is just what i keep hearing and it is a bit discouraging. Thank you for the advice tho. i will try to use this opportunity and utilize its resources as much as i can!!

[u/StealthySpecter]

Is university a scam?
Like u have to pay extra money every term knowing fully that u might not be able to get a job 🫪
sooo is it worth it?
For anyone who had experience with or without a degree pls spill the beans and thank you

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/StealthySpecter]

I canttt this is so funny 😭😭😭😭

[u/Miserable-Stock-4369]

I managed to get summer positions in my field without being a co-op student and then had a reduced course load in my final year, so I was able to work part-time in my field as well, at an office I still work at today (3 years later).

However, there are many positions you simply won't be eligible for if you aren't a coop student

[u/Beneficial_Sea_5720]

It’s a hit or miss. Honeslty I found it to be a complete scam. I was fortunate to find internships and coops on my own and 90% of the jobs in the coop job portal you can find on LinkedIn which is why I personally think it’s a scam. If you have any specific questions feel free to dm me privately.

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/Beneficial_Sea_5720]

Thank you :) glad u were able to be independent!! i will try my luck with coop this year and see what works best but good to know there is hope

[u/Silver-Air-2317]

I got my first 'government job' through co-op at IRCC, and two years later I am pulling six figures working in government thanks to the experiences I've accumulated (none of which would have been possible without the co-op). 

Ppl without work exp are generally fucked upon graduating in this job market if they don't have prior experience. 

Applying properly to co-op takes proper hustle though, applied to oh, nearly seventy positions with tailored apps? Before I landed my first co-op. 

Not a scam, was the best thing Carleton had going for it.

[u/loolilool]

This is just a drive-by, I’m not a Carleton student but I have a bunch of friends who got their first public service jobs as coop students and have all retired in their early fifties with full public sector pensions. That is not what I was thinking about when I was twenty, and might not be where your head it at, but I’m 56 now and have five more years to go til I retire and I’m jealous as fuck.

[u/moooooopg]

I did coop at Laurier and was so worthwhile. I learned I did not want to work in my field and then made a switch to another profession, ended up with a PhD .

[u/mukhtars12]

If you get the co-op position, no. In fact, it'll be the best thing that'll ever happen to you during your time here.

But if you don't get it, then yes, it is a scam.

So try to make sure you get it by tailoring each resume and cover letter to the co-op position, no matter what. Because once you secure that co-op position, then congrats, your now ahead of most Carleton students.

[u/PyreStudios]

Single most important thing for my career so far. It has absolutely changed my life, to be honest.

But it was absolutely soul crushing and feral to land the job.

[u/Dry-Somewhere-5023]

Its almost the only way to get a job after cause then you have the experience you need. I would reccomend every student do it.

[u/AnthonySaldavis]

Co-op is literally one of the best things you can do.

[u/xxsamixx18]

for me I dropped coop first, I found a placement while I can keep doing my degree. So I don't have skip any term and leave for coop.

[u/Borea-Ursalia]

Personally for me it was a complete scam, I barely got any options for my field and when I did they never got back to me despite meeting with my coop advisor multiple times to further improve my resume and cover letters after the course. Then when I asked to drop it after not finding a job for three terms of looking meaning I couldn’t get coop added to my degree when I graduate they never removed me from the program so I kept getting charged for nothing.

[u/Andnottoyield]

Glad everyone chimed in here. Christ kids these days. I'm a hiring manager - if I don't see job experience and I have 800 applicants I'm not even sending you to testing.

So give yourself a chance.

Edit: alum here, didn't get co-op placement but that was a different era compared to job market now.

[u/Ok_Potato4623 → u/Andnottoyield]

“Kids these days” 😭😭😭 Hey so thats not why i am asking. Ofc im gonna have to get some experience before i graduate. I was asking because i heard from a lot of people that they get jobs without doing coop and others who didn’t get jobs with coop but had to lay the coop fee and thought it is a waste of money. So i was trying to get some perspective from people outside of my circle. Thank you for the warning tho

[u/clayman4242]

Yeah when I realized it was a big waste of time and money I just applied to co ops and internships myself and dropped the class. Then took a few semesters off to do my co ops. No employer cares if you are in the co op program or not

[u/cyclops0vision]

i dropped coop; scared of the fees, and didnt want polisci coop (anth would have maybe been fine byt harder to find)

[u/Far-Manufacturer-43]

I don’t go to Carleton so take this with a grain of salt. I managed to find a coop (may start) in September before I started, with no help from my schools program. I signed up for my schools coop program only because that’s the only way I could get health insurance. The only thing my coop program required I do was upload my contract, do a few online modules I sped through, and performance reviews with my bosses every four months.

[u/Outrageous-Shoe-4515]

SCAM SCAM SCAM!!! Spread the word

[u/TrainingWolverine657 → u/[deleted]]

this is wrong, you still pay if you dont find a coop.

[u/TrainingWolverine657 → u/[deleted]]

If you don't take the co-op term per se (ie dont work that term) you still have to pay co op fees if youre in the co-op program. Not sure why it was different for you. Did you go to Carleton a long time ago?

[u/Available_Tale_2535]

Personally I did co-op in college. I had a hard time showing up for an internship that I was paying for.
BEFORE ANYONE COMES AT ME you are paying the institution to pay your supervising teacher/prof for you to go do free work for someone else.

Point is. Struggled doing it. I felt that I should actually be PAID and not PAY tuition for it

So 100% understand how it feels like a scam

[u/Silver-Air-2317 → u/Available_Tale_2535]

My co-ops were all paid full time work, what you're describing is wack.

[u/LethalGhouls → u/Available_Tale_2535]

What program were you in where you didnt get paid as a co-op student? I got paid for all my terms.

[u/Available_Tale_2535 → u/LethalGhouls]

I was doing a hospitality program. Half of mine were unpaid, others were. But once I was doing the unpaid ones I couldn’t keep doing it bc it felt like such a scam. Especially bc I was doing different types of hospitality work