Internships, on the other hand, are not automatically built into a school’s academic schedule and must be coordinated independently by the student. Internships can be completed while students are also taking classes and are usually part time during the semester and full time in the summer. Like co-op students, interns work in positions related to their major.

While internships are usually short-term work experiences, co-op partners tend to employ the same student throughout a student’s college career. This means that while most internships often start a student at the ground level regardless of how many other internships the student completed. On the other hand, co-op participants build on their skills from previous work experiences rather than practicing the same lower-level skills over again.

At both internships and co-ops, students must often complete related school work during their experience. However, unlike short-term internship assignments, co-op projects can be very complex. For example, at Kettering University in Flint, Mich., students must complete a senior thesis based on solving a challenge provided from their employer. Both parties benefit as employers receive cost-effective solutions to problems while students get to showcase their skills from their coursework and past work experience.

Additionally, because they spend so much time with their students, co-op employers often become invested in the growing relationship, thus increasing the likelihood a student will be hired upon graduation. Considering they may have trained a student for up to four years, the employers find it doesn’t make sense for them to lose that investment by letting the student go to another company.

About 50,000 employers nationwide participate in co-op programs, including about 80 percent of Fortune 500’s top 100 companies. Co-op employers and the partnering colleges and universities create reciprocal relationships: the employers provide excellent opportunities for students and the school becomes the perfect recruitment source.

Nationally, more than 60 percent of co-op participants accept permanent jobs from their employers, while about 95 percent of co-op participants overall obtain employment immediately following graduation.

Students can cheer that many co-ops are paid, especially in the math and science fields. Students can make above-average salaries while also going to school, and the payouts continue to increase during a student’s time with an employer.

Back to the question of should you co-op. If you want real-world experience now and a competitive edge, consider looking into a college or university offering a qualified co-op program.

About the Author
Jared Bird is a senior Mechanical Engineering major at Kettering University in Flint, Mich., home to the nation’s most advanced cooperative education program. After completing a co-op for four years with LuK USA, LLC in Wooster, Ohio, Jared will begin work at LuK as a test equipment design engineer after graduating this June. While at Kettering, Jared spent one semester working at LuK’s headquarters in Bühl, Germany. To learn more about Kettering University’s co-op program, please visit www.kettering.edu.