Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is co-op?
2. How does co-op work?
3. Who qualifies?
4. What are the benefits of co-op?
5. What is the relationship between co-op and financial aid?
6. Does co-op delay graduation?
7. How do I apply for co-op?
8. What do I do once I get a job?
1. What is co-op?
- An academic program.
- Work in a student‘s major field of study.
- Paid experience.
- Multiple work terms (Two consecutive semesters).
2. How does co-op work?
- Students participate in co-op in one of two methods:
- Parallel: Students work part-time year round while attending school full time.
- Alternating: Students work as full-time employees every other term, alternating terms of full-time work with terms of full-time school.
3. Who qualifies?
- Enrolled full time at UCF as graduate or undergraduate.
- Completed a minimum of 20 college semester hours.
- Maintain a 2.5/4.0 GPA.
- Co-op: Able to work at least 2 full semesters.
- Internship: Able to work at least 1 full semester.
4. What are the benefits of co-op?
- Clarifies career goals.
- Provides major-related work experience.
- Offers competitive salaries.
- Enhances prospects for employment upon graduation.
- Applies classroom theory to a realistic work setting.
- Grants access to state-of-the-art techniques and equipment.
5. What is the relationship between co-op and financial aid?
- Students do NOT need to be receiving financial aid to use co-op.
- Students can continue to receive financial aid while participating in co-op as long as they meet financial aid qualifications.
- Students receiving financial aid should inquire at the Experiential Learning office regarding additional programs.
6. Does co-op delay graduation?
- Most students who participate in co-op graduate in the same time period as those who do not use co-op by including summers in their academic schedule. Those who do take an extra semester find that they save time in job searches after graduation because they are offered professional positions with their co-op employer or employers who give preference to students with professional experience.
7. How do you apply for co-op?
- Complete the co-op Application online, or come to the Experiential Learning office to fill it out.
- Review the Account Setup page and obtain the required documents.
- Meet with your co-op coordinator.
8. What do I do once I get a job?
- Contact your Experiential Learning faculty member and let them know the good news.
- Download Experiential Learning syllabus.
- Your Experiential Learning faculty member registers you in the internship/co-op course.
- Maintain contact with Experiential Learning faculty member throughout the semester.
- Complete all assignments.
