Cooperative Education

Co-op students alternate terms of coursework with terms of full-time employment in industry. These terms of employment constitute an essential, hands-on element in the educational process. The work is related to the chosen field of study in which the student is engaged. Students are required to complete a minimum of 3 work terms with the same company. This equals approximately 46 weeks, or nearly a full year of engineering or computer science experience. The terms are often diversified in order to offer a wide range of experiences that are of increasing difficulty and challenge.

THE CO-OP PROGRAM - A BRIEF HISTORY
Cooperative education was founded at the University of Cincinnati in 1906 by Professor Herman Schneider. Its first period of growth from 1906 to 1942 was moderate but steady. Eight out of ten colleges and universities that began the program continued its operation, and by 1942 there were 30 successful programs in existence. Even the severe depression of the 1930's, when jobs were difficult to find, failed to halt the growth pattern. During the war years, most co-op programs were discontinued in favor of the emergency acceleration of academic programs. After the close of World War II, the second growth period in the cooperative education movement began in 1946. This second period, continuing to the present time, has been characterized by an acceleration of growth, as the total participating colleges and universities rose from 29 in 1946 to nearly 200 colleges and universities by 1970.

In the 1990's, more than 200,000 students participated in cooperative education programs offered by 1,000 colleges and universities each year.

Although the co-op program began in an engineering school and has enjoyed its greatest growth in technical education, in recent years (particularly since 1964) the growth in other areas such as business and administration, liberal arts and education has been a large factor in the accelerated development of co-op curricula in this country

In the late 1950's UWM had a two plus two program with UW-Madison. Students started their studies at UW-Milwaukee and after completing two years of beginning coursework, students transferred to UW-Madison to finish their last two years of engineering work and obtain their degree. In 1964 UW-Milwaukee formed the engineering college and was able to grant engineering degrees. UWM has had a growing cooperative education program since that time. We have approximately 50 students out co-oping each work term with over 150 students participating in the program each academic year.

THE PURPOSE OF THE CO-OP PROGRAM
Cooperative education is based on two observations regarding college students in the United States:

There are certain facets of every profession that students are preparing for that cannot be taught in the classroom. These facets can be learned only through direct, on-the-job experience working with professionals who are already successful in the field.

Most US college students must find employment on a part-time basis while they are in school and during vacation periods, in order to earn part of the cost of their education. In many cases, these jobs have no relation to their ultimate professional career, and therefore do not contribute substantially to the education program of the students. Co-op jobs do.

Cooperative education more than satisfies the above two statements.

"The benefit of being a part of […]'s Co-op program cannot be described by mere words alone. It has boosted my confidence, my grades, my social skills and my outlook on life. Each semester, every piece of being an engineer becomes a little clearer, each problem has a few more solutions and the opportunities within the field stretch out even further. I only hope my contributions can cover even a fraction of what I have been given"