Cooperative Education
Cooperative Education (Co-op) program is a multi-semester, structured method of combining classroom-based education with practical work experience. A cooperative education experience, commonly known as a "co-op", provides academic credit for structured job experience that combine existing courses/coursework with real work experiences.
Cooperative Education (Co-op) at a Glance
-
Minimum 2.5 GPA, minimum 60 credits
-
Earn credit towards your degree (Substitutes for courses in your degree program)
-
Gain practical work experience
-
3 Credits per semester, for a total of 6 credits (two semester minimum, four maximum)
-
Approximately 10 hours per week, totaling 150 hours (per semester)
-
Evaluation is graded satisfactory/unsatisfactory
Co-op experiences are embedded into 18 undergraduate degree programs at Wilmington University:
- Accounting
- Accounting and Finance
- Behavioral Science
- Business Management
- Communication
- Criminal Justice
- Cybersecurity
- Government and Public Policy
- Interdisciplinary Studies
- Finance
- Game Design and Development
- Health Sciences
- Human Resource Management
- Marketing
- Media Design
- Psychology
- Video and Motion Graphics
- Web Information Systems
Note: Students are not able to accept opportunities with home-based business/organizations.
Getting Started
Step 1
Log in to Handshake to explore positions. You’ll need to create a Handshake account, create a resume or upload an existing resume. Now you’re ready to apply for a position.
Step 2
Schedule an appointment with a Work-Integrated Learning Specialist to receive credit.
Office of Work-Integrated Learning
302-356-6820
work-integratedlearning@wilmu.edu
or schedule an appointment
https://calendly.com/shannon-b-jost/wil
International students must receive an approval from the office of International Admission before starting a position.
Frequently Asked Questions
A: A Co-op program experience is a multi-semester program (2 minimum, with a maximum of 4, ideally consecutive). Students will have the opportunity to complete 10-15 hours of work experience per week resulting in approximately 300-600 total hours and may include additional faculty assigned work.
A: Co-op position can be found in Handshake or students can find positions on their own with approval from the Office of Work-Integrated Learning.
A: An approved Co-op experience will substitute for a required internship in a student's major upon approval from the chair.
A: Co-op job experiences are not guaranteed because there are many factors that may affect availability, including the employment market. Therefore, staff in the Work-Integrated Learning department cannot control, predict or guarantee whether you will be offered a Co-op experience in the semester you desire to work.
Co-op confirmations of job assignments/offers are left to the discretion of the employer and only the employer.