Co-op students are considered full-time students while on work terms. Under federal Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP) guidelines, full-time students remain full-time students as long as they are considered so by their institution.

Any individual nation may set their own policy on co-op. It is important to discuss your desire to participate in co-op with your funding coordinator, as early as you can.

You may bring possible options to your funding coordinator for them (and any possible deciding boards) to consider, such as:

• Full funding during work terms including living allowance
• Tuition/co-op fees only during work terms, without living allowance. (This is the most common).
• Temporarily pausing your funding during work terms.

You may also provide this resource to your funding coordinator to help with any uncertainty: Co-op & Indigenous Third Party Sponsorship Funding.

Yes. Depending on the program, co-op adds an additional year, or half-year to your program length. Students complete a minimum of 3, sometimes 4, 4-month work terms, depending on the program. Joining co-op earlier in your degree will shorten the length of your overall program.

Some nations may require your degree to be completed during a 4-year period. Refer to your nation's post-secondary funding policy. If this is the case with your nation, connect with your nation's funding coordinator, and discuss your desire to do co-op early. Many nations will provide exceptions for students who wish to do co-op.

If your nation requires you to complete your degree within a 4-year period, we still welcome you to apply and participate in UBC co-op programs during those 4 years.

Jobs found outside of UBC co-op job boards can be counted as work terms if they meet co-op program criteria. Please share the information about your job with your co-op office to determine if it could count towards your co-op requirements.

Some examples of outside opportunities that Indigenous students have access to that can fulfill co-op requirements are:

• First Nations Health Authority Indigenous Student Program (any area, including IT, public health engineering, policy, HR, communications, finance, project/admin support, planning, environmental health, health benefits administration)
• BC Housing Indigenous Student Program - various positions
• BC Indigenous Youth Internship Program - Students spend 9 months in a BC Government Ministry that aligns with their interests or area of study, then 3 months in an Indigenous community or organization.