Cooperative education
Cooperative education is a structured method of combining classroom-based education with practical work experience.
A cooperative education experience, commonly known as a "co-op" or work-study program, provides academic credit for structured work experiences, helping young people in school-to-work transition.
It falls under the umbrella of work-integrated learning but is distinct, as it alternates a school term with a work term, reflecting a partnership between the academic institution and the employer, intended to advance the education of the student.
Co-op jobs are more in-depth and last a longer period than a traditional internship, making it more valuable to students in the workforce. They allow for more networking opportunities, better income, stronger resume, and an overall unique learning experience.
The University of Waterloo operates the largest post-secondary co-op program in the world, with nearly 20,000 co-op students enrolled over three semesters in more than 120 programs.
Schneider's Foundations
While at Lehigh University at the beginning of the 20th century, Herman Schneider, an engineer, architect, and educator, concluded that the traditional learning space or classroom was insufficient for technical students. Schneider observed that several more successful Lehigh graduates had worked to earn money before graduation. Gathering data through interviews with employers and graduates, he devised the framework for cooperative education. About that time, Carnegie Technical Schools, now Carnegie Mellon University, opened and thereby minimized the need for Schneider's co-op plan in the region around Lehigh University. However, in 1903 the University of Cincinnati appointed Schneider to their faculty. In 1905 the UC Board of Trustees allowed Schneider to "try this cooperative idea of education for one year only, for the failure of which they would not be held responsible". The cooperative education program was launched in 1906, and became an immediate success, and the program was kept beyond the one-year allotted. The University of Cincinnati returned to the matter in its September 2005 board meeting, declaring the 100-year trial period of one hundred years of Cooperative Education officially ended, for the success of which the Board resumed full responsibility.Schneider, beginning from the rank of assistant professor, would rise through the rank of Dean of Engineering to become interim president of the University of Cincinnati, based largely upon the strength of the co-op program. Throughout his career, he was an advocate for the co-op framework. His thirty years of service to the University of Cincinnati are partly credited for that institution's worldwide fame. In 2006, the University of Cincinnati unveiled a statue of Dean Schneider outside the window of his former office in Baldwin Hall.
In 1965, The Cooperative Education and Internship Association created "The Dean Herman Schneider Award" in honor of the contributions made by Dean Schneider to cooperative education. The award is given annually to an outstanding educator from the faculty or administration. In 2006, the University of Cincinnati established the Cooperative Education Hall of Honor "to give a permanent place of honor to individuals and organizations that have made a significant qualitative difference in the advancement of Cooperative Education for the benefit of students."
Post-Cincinnati Evolutions
In 1909, recognizing the potential of co-op education, Northeastern University began implementing co-op in their engineering program, becoming the second institution in America to do so. By 1921, Antioch College had adapted co-op practices to their liberal arts curricula, leading many to refer to co-op as the "Antioch Plan." In 1919, the General Motors Institute was opened, following this model to train new General Motors hires. This school was later renamed Kettering University.The Drexel University four-year co-op program launched in the College of Engineering in 1919, with the participation of just three academic majors. This initiative stemmed from the belief of the university founder, Anthony J. Drexel, that Drexel University should prepare its students for successful careers through an education that balanced classroom theory with real-world practice. In 1925, the five-year co-op program took hold in the chemical engineering department, forming the foundation of Drexel's cooperative education program. Today, the cooperative education program supports students in more than 75 different disciplines, making it one of the largest programs in the US.
In 1922, Northeastern University emphasized its commitment to co-op by extending it to the College of Business Administration. As new colleges opened at Northeastern, such as the College of Liberal Arts and the College of Education, they became co-op schools as well. By the 1980s, Northeastern was the acknowledged leader in co-op education worldwide.
In 1926, Dean Schneider invited those interested in forming an Association of Co-operative Colleges to the University of Cincinnati for the first convention. The idea took hold and was followed by three more annual conventions. In 1929, the Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education, now called the American Society for Engineering Education, formed the Division of Cooperative Engineering Education, incorporating the membership of the ACC.
In 1957, the first Canadian cooperative education program began at the University of Waterloo with an inaugural class of 75. Initially viewed skeptically, this program quickly became a model for other co-op programs across Canada. These programs were based on both the sandwich education model popularized in Britain and the new American co-op programs. Canadian co-op programs generally follow a four-month school system interspersed with four-month work terms. This common system allows employers to hire students from multiple institutions with common timelines and training programs.
In 1961, the Ford and Edison Foundations commissioned a study of cooperative education, published as Work-study college programs; appraisal and report of the study of cooperative education,. This study led to the formation of the National Commission for Cooperative Education. NCCE remains today to promote and lobby for cooperative education in the United States. Its membership comprises sponsoring corporations and organizations from academia and business.
Within Canada, the need for connections between co-op programs became clear by 1973. The Canadian Association for Co-operative Education began with 29 educators from 15 institutions. In its initial form, it did not include any employers or industry representatives. The institutions felt that they should decide on an integrative plan for co-op education prior to admitting employers as members. In 1977, employers, HR representatives, and recruiters began to join CAFCE.
By 1962, about 150 academic institutions used co-op education, in one form or another. Many were outside of engineering. The need for professional support of non-engineering programs became obvious, and the membership of ASEE, in 1963, began the Cooperative Education Association. To reflect its membership more accurately, it was eventually renamed the Cooperative Education and Internship Association. It remains today as the professional association for cooperative education outside of ASEE.
Much of those early efforts of NCCE focused on lobbying and promoting cooperative education. In 1965, the federal Higher Education Act provided support specifically for cooperative education. Funding continued from the federal government through 1992 when Congress ended its support of cooperative education. In total, over $220 million was appropriated by the federal government toward cooperative education.
In Canada, regulation of cooperative education programs is overseen by CAFCE. Programs can apply for accreditation after the first class of co-op students has graduated. To be accredited, 30% of the time spent in the program must be devoted to work experience, and each experience must last at least 12 weeks.
In 1979, educators from Australia, Britain, Canada, and the United States, met to discuss work-related programs in their respective countries. In 1981 and 1982, this group, headed by President Ryder, convened an international conference on cooperative education. In 1983, several college and university presidents, educational specialists, and employers from around the world formed the World Council and Assembly on Cooperative Education to foster cooperative education worldwide. In 1991, it renamed itself the World Association for Cooperative Education. By 2005, that Association had a membership of over 1,000 individuals from 43 different countries.
In Australia
Cooperative education is common in most Australian high schools and has been integrated into many university courses as a part of making up final grades. Australian institutions often refer to cooperative education as Work Placement, VET, or Prac. All of these involve students going into their chosen field and joining that field for a set number of weeks in unpaid work. This unpaid work goes towards credits for graduation in both schools and universities Australia-wide. The Australian government has been funding this program due to the success of highly regarded applicants who have come from doing work placements. Many companies in Australia are more inclined to hire an individual who has had proper training within their specific field than those who have not, creating many more successful applicants and jobs within Australia.In Germany
Cooperative education has helped to address social issues.In Germany, the significance of cooperative education has increased in the last few years. Cooperative education programs now have an important profile in the education system.
In 2013, the importance was underlined in a paper by the Economic Council of the CDU, including a definition of the dual study program.
The council defined two main characteristics:
- Duality: Two learning facilities must be provided: academic studies and vocational training. There should be duality between these facilities with agreements and cooperation in adjusting educational content and goals.
- The academic part is organized by a university of cooperative education and has to meet the criteria defined by the standing conference of education ministers of the 16 German states to be approved as equivalent to education at other state-recognized academic institutions, namely traditional universities and universities of applied sciences.