Determine your career in cooperative education

GardenValley Collegiate
Winkler, Manitoba

By Jen W.

"What are you going to do when you grow up?" is a common question asked during our childhood years. Now, as graduation draws near, students are getting serious about the question. Harv Giesbrecht's Cooperative Education (Co-op Ed) class will help students at Garden Valley Collegiate decide if the career they have in mind is what they will actually like.

Meagan P. is a student in Mr.Giesbrecht's Co-op Ed class this semester. "The class is generally 15-20 people," Meagan said, "but our class is smaller than usual." The class offers hands-on experience in fields of work that students are interested in.

Mr.Giesbrecht will try to find students any job they are interested in-the possibilities are endless. The more common jobs students have are secretarial positions, educational assistant, and factory work. Students have had jobs in Winkler, Morden, Altona, and surrounding areas.

The idea for a Co-op Ed class originated from a school in Toronto, Ontario. The class not only gives students job experience but they will get anywhere from three to five credits, depending on how many hours they put in. The times start at 220 hours for three credits, 330 hours for four credits, and 440 hours for five credits. The class is one semester long so they can still get compulsory senior four credits along with other courses that a student may also want to take.

When a student enrols in Co-op Ed, some class time is required every Wednesday during periods four and five. Other than that, the students are always on at the job. When students are finished with Co-op Ed, they are often offered a job at the place where they were working. If they don't get the job, it will be a big help getting other jobs because it looks good on a resume. The employers like it because they don't have to pay the students; they also get great employees this way.

This class is great for a person who likes to get out of the regular school day. Students can be working, increasing their chances of getting a job later, and still be credited for it.

Front Page soapbox