Experience pathway · University of Windsor
Connect the degree to work experience and outcomes
- 1Entry modelDirect, later-entry, optional
- 2PrepareSkills, portfolio, applications
- 3ExperienceCo-op, internship, research
- 4TranslateNetwork, evidence, next role
University of Windsor Careers & Work Experience
Windsor, Ontario
Co-op, internships, research, and outcome questions. This focused guide keeps the detailed tables, official sources, and practical next steps in one manageable reading path.
Reviewed August 16, 2026 · Information checked against official university sources · How we review guides
Co-op, Research, and Career Outcomes
Windsor co-op, the border employers, and what it costs
Windsor co-op is unusual in one important way: it is largely an admission decision, not a later opt-in. You select the co-op version of the degree on the OUAC form and clear a higher average once — 74% in Engineering, 75% in Computer Science, 78% in Business, 80% in the Arts streams. Miss that and you compete again in second year against a cumulative-average bar.
What you get
Windsor promises 12 months of paid, relevant, full-time work experience. A work term runs 12 to 16 weeks at a minimum of 35 hours per week, and Engineering and Business students complete three four-month terms across four years.
Which programs
Business, Business and Computer Science, Computer Science, Engineering, Kinesiology, Physics, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Communication, Media and Film Studies. There is no co-op to opt into elsewhere.
Two ways in
Select the co-op version of the degree on the OUAC form and clear the higher admission average once, or apply again as a current student — December/January of first year for Arts and Kinesiology, August/September of second year for Business, Computer Science, Engineering and Physics.
Staying in
Engineering needs 60% cumulative with no more than one grade below 50%, and 70% in year one for automatic continuation if admitted directly. Business needs 65% cumulative plus a 70% major average. Everyone completes Transform, a non-credit job-readiness program.
Fees
For May 2026 to April 2027, $485.00 per term across eight terms for domestic students and $601.00 for international students. Chemistry and Biochemistry pays $485.00 across four study terms plus $647.00 across three work terms.
No guarantee
Windsor states that The Co-operative Education Program does not guarantee placements and that co-op fees are not job placement fees. Wages are set by the employer and students are not told the salary until ranking day.
Windsor answers the guarantee question itself
The co-op FAQ says it twice: The Co-operative Education Program does not guarantee placements, and there is no guarantee that you will get a co-op placement, so you should explore as many avenues as possible. The fee page adds that co-op and internship fees are not job placement fees nor direct service fees to individual students. Wages are set by the employer, and students are not told the salary until ranking day. Every accepted student completes Transform, a non-credit job-readiness program, and then competes for placements.
Where the border shows up in the placement list
Two of Windsor's largest named co-op employers exist because of where the campus sits. The Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority has hosted 289 UWindsor co-op students since 2016 and won Windsor's Co-op/Internship Employer of the Year award four years running, on a $6.4 billion, 2.4-kilometre crossing that has employed roughly 13,550 workers since groundbreaking. The Stellantis Canada–UWindsor Automotive Research and Development Centre accounts for more than 800 engineering co-op placements over thirty years. Windsor publishes no co-op placement rate, so neither figure tells you your odds — but it tells you what kind of work is within driving distance.
International co-op students no longer need a separate work permit
Windsor's International Student Centre states that as of April 1, 2026, you do not need a co-op work permit for student work placements such as co-op and internships as a post-secondary international student. The conditions are a study permit that allows on-campus work, a letter from Windsor confirming the placement is a program requirement, full-time enrolment at a designated learning institution, a post-secondary program of at least six months leading to a credential, and a placement totalling 50% or less of the study program. ESL and FSL courses, general interest courses and preparatory courses remain ineligible. Older guidance describing a mandatory separate permit is out of date. Budget the international co-op fee of $601.00 per term across eight terms, which sits outside the tuition guarantee.
Current program
What Windsor co-op is
Windsor describes co-op as earn while you learn and graduate with 12 months of paid, relevant, full-time work experience. A work term is full-time at a minimum of 35 hours, 12 to 16 weeks long (ideally 16 weeks of employment), paid, and relevant to the field of study. Employers span automotive, technology, business, finance, government and healthcare, locally, nationally and internationally.
University of Windsor: UWindsor Co-operative Education overview · Verified August 16, 2026
Current programs
Which undergraduate programs have co-op
Windsor lists undergraduate co-op in Business, Business and Computer Science, Computer Science, Engineering, Kinesiology, Physics (Physics and High Technology, and Medical Physics), Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Communication, Media and Film Studies. If your program is not in that list there is no co-op stream to opt into.
University of Windsor: Co-op programs list: which degrees include co-op · Verified August 16, 2026
Current process
When you apply to co-op
High-school applicants select the co-op version of the degree on the OUAC form, which is direct entry. Current students apply later, and the window differs by faculty: Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, Kinesiology and Sport Management apply in December/January of 1st year; Business, Computer Science, Engineering and Physics apply in August/September of 2nd year; and Chemistry and Biochemistry apply in August/September of 3rd year.
Choosing the co-op program on OUAC is the cheapest route in — you clear a higher admission average once instead of competing again in second year.
University of Windsor: Apply to co-op: application windows by program · Verified August 16, 2026
Current requirements
Engineering co-op eligibility and sequence
Engineering co-op runs Study/Study/Off in year one, Study/Study/Work in year two, Study/Work/Study in year three and Work/Study/Study in year four — three four-month work terms giving the equivalent of one year of career-related work experience. Entry to year-two co-op requires a year one cumulative average of 60% and no more than one outstanding grade below 50%; students directly admitted to co-op need a year one cumulative average of 70% for automatic continuation; and years two through four require a cumulative average of 60% and no more than one outstanding grade below 50%.
Direct admission to co-op does not survive a weak first year. Falling below 70% costs the automatic continuation even though 60% keeps you in the program.
University of Windsor: Engineering co-op: eligibility, streams, and work-term sequence · Verified August 16, 2026
Current requirements
Business co-op eligibility
Business co-op requires a year one cumulative average of 65%, major average of 70% and no more than one outstanding grade below 50%, and continuation requires maintaining the same three conditions. The sequence matches Engineering's: three work terms across four years. All accepted students complete Transform, a non-credit job readiness program, in the fall of second year before competing for placements.
University of Windsor: Business co-op: eligibility and work-term sequence · Verified August 16, 2026
May 2026 – April 2027
Co-op fees
Windsor's co-op and internship fee schedule for May 2026 to April 2027 charges undergraduate co-op students $485.00 per term across 8 terms domestically and $601.00 per term across 8 terms internationally. Chemistry and Biochemistry co-op is structured differently at $485.00 across 4 study terms plus $647.00 across 3 work terms domestically, and $601.00 plus $802.00 internationally.
Eight terms at $485.00 is $3,880 for a domestic student and $4,808 for an international one, spread across the degree. Windsor states the fees are set through the Board of Governors on an annual basis and are subject to change.
University of Windsor: Co-op and internship fee schedule, May 2026 – April 2027 · Verified August 16, 2026
Current policy
Windsor says the quiet part out loud
The co-op FAQ states that The Co-operative Education Program does not guarantee placements and that There is no guarantee that you will get a co-op placement, so you should explore as many avenues as possible. The fee page adds that co-op and internship fees are not job placement fees nor direct service fees to individual students. Wages are set by the employer, and students are not told the salary until ranking day.
University of Windsor: Co-op FAQs: placement, wages, and the no-guarantee statement · Verified August 16, 2026
Effective April 1, 2026
International co-op students no longer need a separate work permit
Windsor's International Student Centre states that as of April 1, 2026, you do not need a co-op work permit for student work placements, such as co-op, internships, as a post secondary international student. The conditions are a study permit allowing on-campus work, a letter from the institution confirming the placement is a program requirement, full-time enrolment at a designated learning institution, a post-secondary program of at least six months leading to a credential, and a work placement totalling 50% or less of the study program.
This removes a real barrier that older guidance still describes. ESL and FSL courses, general interest courses, and preparatory courses remain ineligible.
University of Windsor: International Student Centre: co-op and internship work permit · Verified August 16, 2026
Reported 2025–2026
The border shows up in the placement list
Windsor reports that the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority has hosted 289 co-op students from UWindsor since the program started in 2016 and won Windsor's Co-op/Internship Employer of the Year award for four consecutive years, on a $6.4 billion, 2.4-kilometre crossing that has employed approximately 13,550 workers since groundbreaking. The Stellantis Canada–UWindsor research centre accounts for more than 800 engineering co-op placements over thirty years.
This is the concrete version of the border and automotive story. Two of Windsor's largest named co-op employers exist because of where the campus sits.
University of Windsor: UWindsor grads shine on the Gordie Howe Bridge project · Verified August 16, 2026
Current marketing figures
Windsor publishes two different employer-partner counts
The experiential learning page says 450+ companies provide co-op and internship opportunities. The future-students home page says work integrated learning partnerships in place with 250+ companies in Ontario, across Canada, and around the world. Both are Windsor pages and they have not been reconciled.
Windsor publishes no co-op placement rate on any page reviewed, so neither number tells you your odds of getting placed.
University of Windsor: Future students home: program counts and student-faculty ratio · Verified August 16, 2026
Official Windsor co-op and career sources
- UWindsor Co-operative Education overview
- Co-op programs list
- Apply to co-op: application windows by program
- Co-op and internship fee schedule, May 2026 – April 2027
- Engineering co-op: eligibility and work-term sequence
- Business co-op: eligibility and work-term sequence
- Co-op FAQs: the no-guarantee statement and wages
- International Student Centre: co-op and internship work permit
- UWindsor grads on the Gordie Howe Bridge project
- Common University Data Ontario 2023: employment and retention
Career Planning
| Experiential Learning | Check whether your target program offers co-op, internships, clinical placements, practicums, studios, field schools, or research terms. |
|---|---|
| Career Services | Compare job boards, employer partnerships, resume support, interview preparation, and alumni mentoring. |
| Research Access | For graduate-school or professional-school pathways, look for undergraduate research assistant roles and lab access. |
| Outcome Questions | Ask where graduates work or study next, and whether outcomes differ by program, co-op stream, or campus. |
Official Sources and Next Steps
Stellar keeps this guide structured for comparison, but official university pages remain the source of truth for program requirements, tuition, residence, scholarships, deadlines, and policy changes.
Prepared by Stellar Advisers Editorial Team · Reviewed August 16, 2026 · Editorial, corrections, and source methodology