Benefits to Students

Co-op students from the Ingram School
of Engineering earn between $15 and $20 an hour during their co-op work periods, and most of these students help pay their college costs with these earnings. More than a year of relevant work experience brings many benefits to the student when seeking full-time employment:
higher salary, seniority, retirement, vacation and other fringe benefits.

Well-chosen training situations provide the
student a real world laboratory in which he or she can test and apply knowledge gained in the classroom. Additionally, academic performance is enhanced by skills learned on the job. Thus, graduation rates increase significantly for co-op students.

The student's performance inevitably improves when he or she can identify goals in the classroom with work activities. The practical application of knowledge and abilities also helps the students learn more about their strengths, weaknesses and preferred job duties, which help to make
better career choices.

The demands of full-time employment such as punctuality, team work, application of skills and sound judgment help to develop more responsibility and increased confidence in a student's ability to adjust when confronted with diverse situations.