Launchpad: Campus Open House - Learn & Earn Opportunities

Problems We Want to Solve

• Shrinking entry-level opportunities:
  Research from the Burning Glass Institute shows that growth in entry-level roles — the traditional launchpad for postsecondary graduates — is being suppressed as organizations adopt generative AI. New graduates now face fewer pathways into the labour market at the moment they need them most.
• Limited and hidden WIL opportunities:
  Research shows that graduates who participate in Work-Integrated Learning (WIL), especially co-operative education, outperform their peers by 16%. Yet traditional WIL programs are limited and highly competitive, while many newer WIL options — including paid programs that cost employers nothing — go underused simply because students and employers don’t know they exist.

Project Scope

• Host WIL Open House events at postsecondary institutions to spotlight underutilized WIL (Earn & Learn) programs and significantly improve students’ access to career-starting opportunities.
• Deliver the Open House in collaboration with WIL program partners, campus career centres, and student unions, ensuring broad reach, trusted engagement, and clear pathways to participation.
• Generate analytics and reporting to measure social impact, inform public policy, and strengthen cross-sector collaboration.