A Brief History...
Co-op is a long term investment in the future of your company
and future employees.
The first co-op program started at the University of Cincinnati in the early 1900s. Dr. Herman Schneider, an engineering professor, realized that his students' education was incomplete without practical experience. He made arrangements with local employers to hire students on a schedule that alternated between school and work. With that, co-op was born. In recent years, co-op has spread to virtually all majors, not just engineering,in many universities. Employers find that co-op allows them to screen potential full time hires. Students are trained while they are co-ops. When they graduate, they are fully trained, productive, prospective employees.
Co-op at Georgia Southern has existed for 20 years, primarily for engineering and technology students. In 1986, it was centralized in the Office of Career Services and was offered to all majors. Cooperative education is a balanced educational program in which undergraduate and graduate students participate in planned work experiences related to their academic major and/or career interests. Students supplement their classroom learning with relevant, practical training and experience. The purpose of the Cooperative Education Program at Georgia Southern University is to produce optimal educational results for students by integrating planned work experience with classroom Instruction.
Program Goals
The four goals of the Cooperative Education Program are to:
- Provide students with structured periods of work related to their academic major and/or career choice which will facilitate their educational and career goals.
- Enhance the career development process of students by providing meaningful experiences for them to explore and participate in the world of work.
- Provide employers with opportunities to contribute to the education and development of prospective employees.
- Provide effective service links between industry and Georgia Southern University.
How do you benefit from co-op?
Recruiting Savings – Employers spend an average of $6,500
to hire and train new employees, half of whom leave the company
after training. While employers are under no obligation to offer
positions to co-ops upon graduation, many do, lowering recruiting
and turnover costs.
Cost Effectiveness – When you hire a co-op student as
a full-time employee after he/she graduates, you hire a trained
professional who is productive from day one.
Specialized Skills – Co-op employees bring the latest
theories, ideas, and classroom training to their jobs. You have
access to this talent and information pool
Flexibility – By using co-ops, your full time employees
are freed for more complex and creative tasks. Co-ops can also
complete special tasks that no one else has had time to work
on.
Community Relations – Organizations that hire co-ops assist
students who might otherwise have difficulty financing their
degrees, thus providing a valuable service to the community.
Co-op employers are among the most respected of business leaders
across the country because of their contribution to an outstanding
educational program. While co-op employers realize practical
business benefits at low cost and minimal risk, the work experience
provided to students is an integral part of their education.
It reinforces academic training and encourages professional
development. In this cooperation effort, everyone wins employers,
students, college, and community.
Starting
A Co-op Site
Once you have decided to become a co-op site, you may contact
Wallace Brown at 912-681-5197 to begin the process for
the establishment of your program. Wallace,
our Experiential Education Coordinator, will contact you at
the beginning of each academic semester and inquire about
co-op openings or possible openings for the coming semesters.
All opportunities are published and placed on Eagle Career
Net. This dynamic content management system allows employers
to self-list employment opportunities on our site. If you
wish, openings can be specified as "potential."
With Eagle Career Net, you control how your posting is presented
to students. The various University academic departments are
also helpful in advertising co-op openings.
When students express an interest in posted
opportunities through Eagle Career Net, their résumés and
additional career documents are transmitted directly to employers.
Additional information and forms as you require can be specified
in the recruitment process if desired. You decide when and
whom you want to interview.
Traditional methods for interviewing include
initial telephone screening, recruiting on a set date at Georgia
Southern, and inviting one or two candidates for an on-site
interview at your place of business. Other methods can be
arranged through the experiential education coordinator.
Employer Responsibilities
1. To ensure that the student’s work is related to his/her
major.
2. To provide a safe and healthy work environment.
3. To provide a planned work sequence for each student such
that he/she is given progressively increasing work responsibilities.
Tasks should relate to those that the student would perform
if hired as a full-time permanent employee in that position.
4. To develop job descriptions outlining work assignments
for each rotation.
5. To provide a reasonable salary, generally, 60 percent of
the earnings of a newly hired professional in that field.
And, if appropriate, assist with housing arrangements for
each semester the student works.
6. To provide the co-op coordinator with a list of co-op students
for each semester.
7. To inform the coordinator of openings promptly so they
can be advertised and you can receive resumes of suitable
candidates.
8. To provide the coordinator with a student evaluation at
the end of each work semester.
Related Links:
» Benefits to Employers
» Employer Responsibilities
» Program Setup
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