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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Building capacity in Indigenous early childhood education

The project explores how Indigenous communities can be engaged in the care and education of their children and how they might advocate for better and more equitable services and programing.
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The Big Shift: Changes in Canadian Manufacturing Employment, 2003 – 2018 Executive Summary

How did Canadian regions fare during the manufacturing employment decline of 2003-2009? Were manufacturing jobs replaced by comparable jobs or by different jobs, thus marking a permanent shift in the nature of employment?
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Smart Manufacturing in the Meat Processing Industry

Smart manufacturing in the meat processing industry increases the demand for advanced technical and digital skills, such as robotic operation, control, and maintenance, along with higher levels of education and training including college diplomas and other formal certifications.
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