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. 

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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.

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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

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Research

Learning From One Another: Labour Markets in Northern Ontario

The economy in Northern Ontario has recovered from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and is expected to grow by 20 per cent over the next 20 years. However, the existing workforce is not able to fill the demand for labour in the region, which will continue to grow. This primer provides an overview of Northern Ontario’s labour market conditions. It is part of a multi-year collaborative research project which explores labour markets in Nunavut, Northern Ontario, and Yukon.
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Project

Virtualization of Experiential Learning Platforms and their Pedagogical Models

The British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) tested the virtualization of training by building a platform that provided learners, instructors and researchers with remote access to a physical training environment.
A woman and a man in a business meeting, reviewing documents.
Project

Reimagining Equity-Centred Supports for Racialized Changemakers in Metro Vancouver

The first phase of this project aimed to co-create and pilot an equity-centred regional social enterprise and social impact incubator and accelerator program, geared to serve the unique and varied needs of racialized newcomer founders, leaders, and teams in the Metro Vancouver area.
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