STUDENT WORK PLACEMENT PROGRAM

By September 20, 2019April 21st, 2023Uncategorized

Applications for 2019-2020 co-op placements now being accepted.

Apply Here

What could your company achieve with up to $7,000 in co-op wage subsidies?

The Student Work Placement Program (SWPP) is an initiative to increase the job-readiness of students registered in STEM or business and all other programs at Canadian post-secondary institutions.

The program gives employers the freedom to:

  • Gain access to funds to hire co-op students
  • Leverage a pool of workers eager to enhance their skills
  • Develop new talent for future recruitment needs

Program description

The program’s co-op wage subsidies help knock down that cost barrier, by covering the cost of a co-op student’s salary by 50% up to a maximum of $5,000 and 70% up to a maximum of $7,000 for first-year students and under-represented groups including:

  • Women in STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)
  • Indigenous students
  • Persons with disabilities
  • Newcomers

The program enables you to bring on an eager-to-learn student for a special project – and at the end of the placement end up with a skilled candidate already oriented to your company who could meet your future recruiting needs.

Long success record

BioTalent Canada has a long track record of successful wage-subsidy programs, helping new talent gain the skills needed for employment in biotech while assisting companies in offsetting the costs associated with hiring. The Student Work Placement Program has placed over 900 students with over 275 employers between September 2017 and September 2019. For stories and more details on the success of BioTalent Canada wage subsidy programs please see our Mapping Potential – Profiles of Canada’s biotech frontiers

Eligibility

Wage subsidies are available to all employers who are creating a work-integrated learning opportunity and who meet the program criteria. Employers can hire any student from any post-secondary institutions across Canada through BioTalent Canada’s Student Work Placement Program.

To qualify for the program, either the co-op position needs to have a biotechnology focus or the employer needs to have a biotechnology focus.

Participant/ Student must be:

  • Enrolled as a full-time student at a post-secondary education institution
  • A Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or persons to whom refugee protection has been conferred and legally entitled to work in Canada in accordance with relevant provincial or territorial legislation and regulations
  • Studying in fields related to science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), Business and/ or any other program

Please also see the Participant information page for participant eligibility.

Co-op placement criteria:

  • Must be a full-time position (37.5 hours/week), 5 days a week for a minimum of 16 weeks.
  • Must be with a bio-economy employer and/or fulfilling a bio-economy job function
  • The balance of the wages cannot be funded by another federal program
  • Co-op placements being paid through an academic institution are not eligible to the program
  • The student must be added to the employer’s payroll which includes Federal/Provincial tax deductions (CPP, EI, etc). Co-ops paid through a stipend or grant are not eligible. Participants are not eligible for the program as contractors.
  • Should the co-op be longer than 16 weeks, BioTalent Canada will only fund the first 16 weeks

All co-op placements have to be new (i.e. over and above for what the employer usually hires)

For application details and instructions please download the full application forms.

Uncertain if your job qualifies? Don’t count yourself out.

Contact Jenn at 1-866-243-2472, ext. 298 or jash@biotalent.ca, or contact Colleen, ext. 221 or chayes@biotalent.ca  or Hannah, ext. 215 or hwalhad@biotalent.ca

Funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Student Work Placement Program.

Shane Ropp

Author Shane Ropp

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