By Robbin Beauchamp, Abbey Pober and Faith Bade

 

Wentworth’s CO-OPS + CAREERS office was just a few short days away from hosting its March 2020 jobs fair when campus closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

But within two weeks, the team transitioned the event to a virtual format, affording students the chance to connect with employer representatives through WITworks, the university’s career management system. Shortly after, they worked closely with Symplicity, the vendor hosting WITworks, to allow for video meetings and the ability to host two additional fairs—one in August for fall co-op seekers and recent graduates seeking full-time jobs, and a three-day event targeted by academic major in October that was open to all students and alumni.

Less than a year after that initial March closure, another CO-OPS + CAREERS Fair was held virtually, this time with more than 400 students meeting 70 employers. Feedback has been unanimously positive, and the event has supplied a blueprint for future job-seeking and networking abilities.

IN THE FIELD

Shortly after campus closed, employers began sharing how their organizations and industries were adapting to COVID-19. CO-OPS + CAREERS started the series “Inside Industry Right Now,” which brings employers, students, staff and faculty together via Zoom for hourlong discussions about how COVID-19 has shifted the workplace, what skills employers are currently looking for and industry trends.

ADAPTING TO THE CO-OP LANDSCAPE

Given the negative impact COVID-19 had on co-op employment everywhere, CO-OPS + CAREERS acted quickly to expand opportunities for students to earn co-op credit, gain valuable work experience and expand their skills to position themselves for their next co-op or postgraduate career. Many discussions were held with academic departments and staff.

CO-OPS + CAREERS partnered with Academic Affairs to offer remote “Creative Co-ops” for most majors. Additionally, they offered students the opportunity to petition to have prior work experience reviewed and potentially meet the requirements for a mandatory co-op.

“As project lead on a pilot program, I had the responsibility of handling meeting scheduling and coordination, researching various topics, facilitating meetings and workshops. Time management was a huge part of the role, and it was important that I managed my time well from the beginning.”

— Darren Bryan, BSM ’21, equity in urban education fellow, Boston Public Schools Office of Recruitment Cultivation & Diversity

Creative co-ops within the last year included:
  • Innovation Fellows (co-ops) in Future Lab developed concrete strategies for innovation during the pandemic, as well as a digital publication to be shared with employers, alumni and the greater Boston ecosystem.
  • Engineering COVID Out offered an introduction to principles and practices needed to effectively manage engineering projects related to addressing the impact of COVID-19.
  • LLM Design Workshop is taught by Adjunct Professor Leila Mitchell out of her own studio, where students investigate opportunities within the realm of experience design. The results can conceivably be published within the LLM Design Insight series and offered as an industry presentation.Other opportunities:
  • In addition to traditional faculty and staff co-ops, Wentworth faculty stepped up and developed many opportunities for remote projects and co-ops.
  • Non-Traditional Co-op keeps students remotely engaged in part-time status through online activities instructed via CO-OPS + CAREERS and an online Workforce Development course taught by faculty focused on skills right for their majors, with the potential to secure work experience
  • Students with extensive and applicable prior work experience (including military-connected work) before attending Wentworth have historically had the option to apply for Industrial Professional Credits (IPC) to receive co-op credit for one mandatory co-op. To expand opportunities, CO-OPS + CAREERS developed the COVID IPC option for those scheduled for a mandatory co-op. The option is less restrictive, allowing for 390 hours of cumulative work and for work that has occurred while enrolled in an academic institution.
  • Some students successfully complete an optional co-op earlier in their Wentworth careers. Given the pandemic, Wentworth developed an option that allows for review and possible approval of a successfully completed Optional Co-op Substitution (COOP3000), which could be substituted for a currently scheduled mandatory co-op.

“I find myself [each time] thinking about how valuable these co-op experiences are, not just for their educational benefit but for the practical knowledge you can gain only on the job. Things were noticeably different [this year] than previous in-person co-ops I’ve had, but that doesn’t mean I had a negative experience. I worked fully remotely last summer and felt that I learned just as much about system administration methodology and software as I would have if the office was in person. I unfortunately did not have the opportunity to work on physical hardware like servers, which was the only thing I felt I missed out on while working remotely.”

— Myles Cheda, BSIS ’21, junior system administrator at The Bridgespan Group, a management consulting nonprofit