If a university program guaranteed you meaningful employment within six months of graduation, would you sign up?
This is a question University of Regina students are now faced with. The Saskatchewan university will be the first in Canada to offer this type of incentive to its students by implementing the UR Guarantee in fall 2010.
The university said it has confidence in the guarantee because their graduates had a 97 per cent employment success rate in the past year and, with the addition of this program, they hope to push this up to 100 per cent.
With a history of more than 40 years of career counselling and co-op placement, the U of R has strong ties to the still-solid Saskatchewanian economy. University president Vianne Timmons said even if there was a local economic downturn, the university would still stand by its guarantee.
To qualify for the program, a student must maintain a 70 per cent grade average and be active in their campus or local community by participating in clubs, playing on a sports team, or volunteering regularly.
Participation in skills-development workshops, such as mock interviews and study groups, are also a requirement. Timmons said this is “a program designed to connect what they’re studying to the real world,” regardless of their chosen discipline.
First- and second-year students will be able to enrol in the program, which promises to train students so well that they will be able to find a job in their field of study within six months after graduation, and if not, they can return for another year of university courses at no additional cost.
Timmons said if the university is unsuccessful in helping a student find a meaningful career, the university is “taking full responsibility” and students are more than welcome back to fill in any gaps that may be missing in their studies.
However, this program is geared towards incoming students, so third and fourth years will not be able to take advantage of the guarantee, Timmons said, because the program builds up on itself over four years. Students who do not maintain their marks throughout the program and those deciding to return for graduate studies will have to forfeit the guarantee of employment, but will still have the benefits of working closely with counsellors to improve their employability when they do enter the workforce.
So far, no other Canadian universities have declared they will be initiating a similar program.
“We’d be thrilled if other universities followed our act, but we’ll always be able to claim we’re the first in Canada,” Timmons said.