Supporting Adult Learners Through Work Integrated Learning (WIL)
Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Québec – December 12, 2024 – John Abbott College has recently been awarded a grant from CEWIL Canada (Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated Learning Canada)to help just over 60 adult learners. The grant was awarded for the project titled Internship experience (WIL) for adult learners in intensive technical programs with an emphasis on both technical and soft skills for the workplace.
The grant has been specifically awarded to the Centre for Continuing Education for students in four AEC (Attestation d’études collégiales) programs: Full Stack Developer, Applied Accounting & Administration, Mobile Application Development and Network Administration. As a condition of graduating from one of these programs, students are required to complete an internship (WIL).Students take the technical and soft skills learned throughout the program, and implement them in a work environment.
This funding has been instrumental in providing critical financial support to mature students returning to school. It enables them to focus more fully on their internship experiences by reducing the pressure of balancing part-time work with full-time studies. As a result, these students are better positioned to succeed, graduate, and enter the workforce more quickly, contributing to their personal economic wellbeing and bolstering Canada’s economy sooner.
– Sylvie Boucher, Business Outreach Manager and assistant coordinator of Internships – John Abbott College Centre for Continuing Education
The majority of the students in AEC programs are adult learners, often with their own families and responsibilities. Of late, more and more internships are unpaid, forcing many students to select their internship based on finances. With the CEWIL grant, students receive funding during their internship, allowing them to choose one that is more valuable and aligned with their competencies. Students are therefore able to fully immerse themselves in the experience without having to worry about related expenses such as transport, child care, clothing, and more.
CEWIL Canada is pleased to support innovative WIL experiences for students at John Abbott College, where students receive financial support and recognition for their WIL experience. Funds such as these aim to eliminate barriers to WIL and increase access for all post-secondary students.
– Charlene Marion, Director WIL at CEWIL Canada
The John Abbott College Centre for Continuing Education has received multiple grants from CEWIL in the past. In 2021, three CEWIL grants were awarded for a total of $82,800. In 2023, $162,000 was granted. All were related to workplace training for technical students.
As part of the grant, Continuing Education hosted an employer recognition event. Internship partners and mentors were invited to the College where they were able to connect with administration and students. Partners and mentors were thanked for their support and awarded a certificate from the students and the College.
This project is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Innovative Work-Integrated Learning (I-WIL) Initiative, in part by CEWIL Canada’s iHUB.
About John Abbott College
John Abbott College is a public Anglophone college serving students since 1971. Today, the increasingly diverse student body includes more than 6500 fulltime day students and an additional 2000 continuing education students. John Abbott is situated on the western tip of the Island of Montreal.
About CEWIL
CEWIL is Canada’s national association with over 1,600 individual members from 130 post-secondary institutions, representing over 100,000 co-op and work-integrated learning students. Current members include employers who recruit post-secondary students, WIL practitioners, organizations and industry partners who support post-secondary student recruitment.
Areas of expertise within our membership include scholarly research, advocacy at federal, provincial, local, and institutional levels, WIL leadership, workplace EDI, curricular development, world class quality and accredited programs and more.
