Calgary Regional WIL Secretariate and Portal 

Work-integrated learning (WIL) gives people the chance to apply the skills they have learned in the classroom while gaining on-the-job experience and pathways to meaningful careers in  emerging, high-demand sectors. 

Download Report

Through FSC’s $2.9 million investment, Calgary Economic Development (CED) is developing a one-stop, online portal for WIL opportunities in the region. These paid work placements focus on gaining hands-on experience from industry experts over the course of a student’s academic studies. Placements can be co-ops, internships, applied research projects or field placements.

person using a laptop and writing in a notebook

This innovative model and central platform will support economic growth and inclusion through WIL for post-secondary students, and will benefit jobseekers, employers and the Alberta economy.This initiative will also make WIL more accessible to non-traditional participants such as mature learners, youth, and organizations not typically connected to post-secondary institutions. 

CED and multiple local stakeholders have come together to form a consortium with technology partners Magnet and Orbis Communications, in order to demonstrate the viability of deploying a regional WIL model and to identify and address issues around broader applicability for communities and regions across Canada. 

This work is immediately contributing to Calgary’s economic transformation, while also providing insights for a more systematic way for employers to collaborate with post-secondary institutions. 

Featured Projects

Photo of an Individual using a laptop on an airplane
Research

Understanding Future Skills: Emergence of an Ecosystem for the Digital Economy

The focus of this report is on the emergence of the digital economy ecosystem in Quebec, with a specific focus on the Montreal artificial intelligence cluster.
Man speaking to a group while woman listens smiling.
Project

Virtual services for career practitioners

This project is a needs assessment of career practitioners and their capacity to offer online services to vulnerable groups during the pandemic.
Female instructor holding hardhat and explaining occupational safety rules to workers sitting at table
Project

Gauging the potential of occupational pluralism in rural Atlantic Canada

This project assessed the potential contribution of expanded and modernized seasonal occupational pluralism — where workers combine different jobs in different parts of the year to generate their annual incomes.
View more