When arranging work terms abroad, programs must pay attention to differences in the scheduling of periods of work. In Canada and the US for example, many co-op programs operate on a cycle of four-month work terms beginning in January, May and September. There are variations to this schedule of course. Some feature work terms as short as three months or as long as twelve months. In the UK, New Zealand and Australia the norm tends toward twelve-month work terms, most beginning around July. As a result, the employers in those countries tend to schedule their student hiring procedures in concert with the timing of the student supply from domestic sources. Attempts to place foreign students who have availability dates quite different from the domestic scheduling might encounter some resistance or difficulty. In such cases, program requirements such as length of work periods may have to be compromised.
In spite of such mismatching, an encouraging flexibility of start dates and work term lengths is being accommodated in international placements. For students sent abroad or received from other countries, programs reported that over 70% of the work terms began during the months of January, May, June, July or September, with January and May starts being the most common. Length of work terms showed a great deal of variation as well. Most fell within the four, six or 12 month duration.
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A Guide for Developing International Co-op Programs |  |