This paper studies the causal effect of student internship experience on labor market choices and wages later in life. We use variation in the introduction and abolishment of mandatory internships at German universities as an instrument for completing an internship while attending university. Employing longitudinal data from graduate surveys, we find positive and significant wage returns of about six percent in both OLS and IV regressions. This result is mainly driven by a higher propensity of working full-time and a lower propensity of being unemployed in the first five years after entering the labor market. Moreover, former interns pursue doctoral studies less frequently. The positive returns are particularly pronounced for individuals and areas of study that are characterized by a weak labor market orientation. Heterogeneous effects are not found across other subgroups of the population.

This is part of a series of documents that provide additional information on the programs, policies and practices related to the citizenship priorities of Royal Bank of Canada (RBC®). The series supplements our annual corporate citizenship reporting, which provides an overview of our priorities, key performance indicators and annual highlights of corporate citizenship issues relevant to financial services companies in general, and to RBC in particular. It complements the information on the results of our operations and financial condition provided in our Annual Report and governance and executive compensation information disclosed in the Management Proxy Circular.

This study analyses trends in co-operative education (co-op) participation for graduates with a college certificate or diploma or a university bachelor's degree from 1986 to 2010 in Canada, based on data from the National Graduates Survey (NGS). Changes in co-op participation rates over time are examined, along with differences by field of study. The reasons behind the increase in co-op participation rates of women are also explored. -As the number of programs and institutions offering co-op programs rose in past decades, the proportion of college graduates who participated in a co-op program rose from 7% in 1986 to 22% in 2010. Similarly, the proportion of co-op participants among graduates with a bachelor's degree rose from 5% to 12% over the same period. - In 2010, the highest co-op participation rates among college graduates were found in Manitoba (32%), Ontario (31%) and Nova Scotia (27%). Among graduates with a bachelor's degree, Newfoundland and Labrador and British Columbia had the highest participation rates (19% and 18%, respectively). - In 2010, 37% of graduates with a bachelor's degree in architecture or engineering participated in a co-op program--the highest co-op participation rate of all major fields of study. In contrast, the participation rate was lower among graduates with a bachelor's degree in social sciences, psychology and law (8%). - Between 1986 and 2010, the co-op participation rate of graduates with a bachelor's degree in commerce, management and public administration rose from 4% to 17%. As a result, one quarter of co-op participants with a bachelor's degree were from this field of study in 2010. - Of bachelor's graduates who participated in a co-op program, the proportion of females rose from 42% in 1986 to 55% in 2010, mainly because co-op participation rates have increased in fields of study that have a higher proportion of females.

Canada is facing a quiet crisis. In the coming decade, half of all jobs will be disrupted by technology and automation. Some will change dramatically. Others will disappear completely, replaced by jobs that are yet to be invented. We are living through an era of radical change, with the latest advancements in artificial intelligence and automation transforming the way we work, even in unexpected fields such as law and customer service. How will we prepare Canadian youth for the workplace of the future? Over the past year, RBC conducted a major study of the Canadian workforce. We crisscrossed the country, talked to students, workers, educators and employers in every sector. We studied job openings and automation trends and dug into mountains of data to figure out how the country is changing and what we can do to prepare.

Cooperative education (co-op) programs in engineering provide students with relevant professional experience before they finish their undergraduate degree. Most programs and employers have academic eligibility requirements that make it difficult to infer whether successful employment outcomes are due to the selection of higher performing students or the causal effect of co-op participation. The goal of this study is to determine factors that are associated with participation in engineering cooperative education programs, controlling for eligibility. Longitudinal and multivariate data from six different institutions, each with large engineering programs where co-op participation is not mandatory, were studied with stepwise logistic regression. Results show that cumulative GPA at the end of the second semester is the strongest predictor of co-op participation. While institutional differences, year of matriculation, ethnicity, major discipline, and high school variables are also significant, gender is not related to co-op participation. The results from this paper will provide useful information for colleges, co-op administrators, and employers about who participates in co-op programs.

The Class of 2003 presents new research on barriers to post-secondary education (PSE)1 in Canada. Building on the barriers identified in the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation's 2002 and 2004 editions of The Price of Knowledge, this survey presents new data on barriers relating to interest and motivation, finances, and academic requirements. The box below lists types of barriers to PSE which have been defined previously. This report examines the extent to which various factors limit access to PSE and how these barriers interact. More specifically, the study presents the impact of multiple barriers on œfirst-generation students (i.e., the first generation in a family to pursue PSE), and explores the PSE aspirations, attainment and barriers of Aboriginal students.

Mismatches between workers' competences and what is required by their job are widespread in OECD countries. Studies that use qualifications as proxies for competences suggest that as many as one in four workers could be over-qualified and as many as one in three could be under-qualified for their job. However, there is significant variation across countries and socio-demographic groups. Our meta-analysis of country studies suggests that over 35% of workers are over-qualified in Sweden compared with just 10% in Finland, with most other OECD countries located between these two extremes. There is also extensive evidence that youth are more likely to be over-qualified than their older counterparts and the same is found to be true for immigrant workers compared with a country's nationals. On the other hand, no definitive evidence has been found of the persistence of qualification mismatch, with some papers showing that over-qualification is just a temporary phenomenon that most workers overcome through career mobility and others finding infrequent transitions between over-qualification and good job matches. Across the board, over-qualified workers are found to earn less than their equally-qualified and well-matched counterparts but more than appropriately-qualified workers doing the same job. Under-qualified workers are found to earn more than their equally-qualified and well-matched counterparts but less than appropriately-qualified workers doing the same job. Over-qualified workers are also found to be less satisfied about their job and more likely to leave their work than well-matched workers with the same qualifications...

From 2007 to 2010, the Qikiqtani Truth Commission (QTC) interviewed almost three hundred and fifty witnesses during public hearings, reviewed one hundred and thirty interviews taped by the Qikiqtani Inuit Association (QIA) between 2004 and 2006, and amassed an authoritative collection of historical documentation about the relationships among Inuit and governments from 1950 to 1975. Through this work, it documented in detail many of the decisions, actions, and consequences that led to the social and economic transformation of the Baffin Region. The primary product of the QTC is this report, written by the Commissioner James Igloliorte. QTC Final Report: Achieving Saimaqatigiingniq was formally presented to the QIA at its 2010 Annual General Meeting on October 20, 2010. Other products from the QTC's work, including a video version of Achieving Saimaqatigiingniq, digitized collections of archival materials, and supplementary reports, will be made available as records are processed and reports are finalized.

Given that Toronto is the second largest financial centre in North America, employing over 800,000 people2, it is critical for companies in the financial services (FS) sector in Toronto to ensure they have the right people and skills to succeed in the future. To do this, financial institutions (FIs) need to understand the key trends shaping the financial services sector, how trends are changing the nature of work, and the impact any changes will have on the demand for specific skill sets. This report seeks to build a better understanding across each of these areas in an effort to provide business leaders with insights and practical recommendations to move their organizations forward, while also giving people looking to enter the sector a view into areas of opportunity and the critical skills they need to thrive.