Program Options
Arts Work Experience (AWE) consists of the Arts Co-operative Education Program, Discipline Specific Internships and Individual Work Terms. Through all program options, our undergraduate Arts students are available to start work terms beginning in January, May or September for four, eight, 12 or 16 months in duration.
Note: If you are interested in hiring a Department of Political Science Graduate student from the Master of Arts in Policy Studies Practicum-Based program please find more information here.
The Arts Work Experience work terms follow the university's academic calendar. We generally recommend that employers start their recruitment process approximately 3-4 months in advance of their proposed start date. For September starts it is recommended to start the recruitment 5-6 months in advance as students will be on campus and more active in the job search during that time.
Here is a suggested recruitment schedule based on student availability:
Requirements for Work Terms:
All positions must:
- Be full-time hours (min 30 hours per week maximum 40 hours per week), and a consecutive of four, eight, 12 or 16 months in duration. It is possible to extend the duration, but the work term cannot exceed 16 months as per university policy.
- Paid at industry standard rates. Must be at least minimum wage. If you are unsure how to determine the rates of pay, please contact us.
- Be in a professional workplace setting
- Provide a supervisor or mentor who oversees the student's work and provides regular feedback to allow the student to learn and grow throughout their term.
- Complete a mid-term and final evaluation with the student as well as a site visit (in person, via phone or video chat) approximately 4-6 weeks into the work term.
Responsibilities of the Employer:
Your responsibilities are generally no different than they would be when hiring any temporary employee, with the added benefit of a campus contact from the Faculty of Arts. AWE staff will informally monitor work experience student progress and do a follow-up site visit with the supervisor once during each work term. There is a mentorship component to the program and AWE students and their supervisors are asked to identify learning objectives to be worked on throughout their work term.