The CAMD co-op program connects students with employers and serves as a major source of talent for companies throughout Boston, New England, and beyond. Hire a CAMD co-op student and get a creative, highly motivated, full-time worker for six months—all while testing out a potential future employee.
To partner with CAMD and become a co-op employer, please contact a co-op coordinator in your field.
Co-op Program Benefits
Talent pipeline
Help educate and mentor the next generation of employees in a comprehensive program that integrates classroom learning with practical experience. Cultivate a talented pool of potential future hires with express knowledge and understanding of your operations, and hand pick the best and brightest for full-time positions after graduation.
Outstanding education
CAMD students are encouraged to forge their own path through their education, and our interdisciplinary focus draws a student body rich with creativity, diverse abilities, and insights. A full-time faculty co-op coordinator is assigned to each employer and student cohort, ensuring that the application and selection process—as well as the work experience itself—is successful. Our students bring a fresh perspective, enthusiasm, and knowledge base to any workplace.
Student readiness
Co-op is a hallmark of the CAMD experience for our students—which means they’re able and eager to contribute in a meaningful way when they walk through your door. In co-op preparatory classes, students assess their interests while exploring career paths and learning the basics of co-op and workplace decorum. On day one of co-op, students are ready and equipped with the skills to hit the ground running. Both on co-op and in the classroom, our students learn to behave like professionals.
Extended employment
Our six-month model allows students to contribute meaningfully to their employers, taking on substantive tasks and longer-term projects that aren’t possible in a traditional 8-12 week summer internship. Hire two candidates to get the equivalent of a year-round employee.
Employer discretion
Our program structure and expert faculty will support you and our students however we can, but it’s your business—which means you’re in control. Establish role-specific candidate criteria and update job descriptions on an ongoing basis, and consult with our faculty co-op coordinators for assistance throughout the process.
Co-op Program Details
Undergraduate and graduate students typically experience six-month co-ops from January to June or July to December. Although you can post a job at any time, the timeframes suggested below are ideal and will enable you to reach more students. Students in certain programs are also able to complete four-month summer co-ops.
January–June
- Job Description Due: Mid September
- • Start Co-op: 1st week of January
- • End Co-op: End of June
July–December
- Job Description Due: Mid January
- Start Co-op: 1st week of July
- End Co-op: 3rd week of December
May–August
- Job Description Due: Mid January
- Start Co-op: 1st week of May
- End Co-op: 4th week of August
CAMD co-op students are in high demand with many job options. In today’s highly competitive job market, you want to attract the students who best fit the job and your organization—and it all starts with the job description.
Here are a few tips:
- Define your business needs and identify how the co-op student will contribute to your organization.
- Think about projects, timelines, planning, processes, required skill sets, communications, and management. Develop a set of key responsibilities and rank them in order of priority.
- Be as comprehensive as possible when describing the job, and ensure that its responsibilities are both important and achievable.
Posting a job description
It’s easy to post a new co-op position or re-post a prior one through NUworks. Just follow the instructions to post your co-op position(s). When completing the online form, remember to select “College: Arts, Media and Design” from the NU Primary Contact College dropdown menu.
If you have any questions about posting your position, please contact your co-op coordinator.
Student interviews
- Once a job is submitted, students can review and apply for the position through our database.
- Contact a student directly if you are interested in arranging an interview. Some companies screen candidates via phone or Skype as a first round, while others prefer in-person interviews.
- Please note that CAMD students are in high demand, so don’t delay. Top students often secure co-op positions very early in the process.
Making an offer
As with the interview process, extending an offer is at your discretion. You decide who to hire, start and end dates, and hourly salary.
Timeframe for student decision
To ensure our students make informed decisions about their co-op jobs, we ask that you allow them 1-3 business days to accept or decline an offer.
Companies set their own salaries and there is a fair amount of variability. Factors affecting salary levels include:
- Student’s level of skill and experience
- Type of position
- Industry and type of company
- Distance from campus
Salaries are based on actual earnings from the last co-op cycle. Market fluctuations, industry, and the student’s experience and ability dictate the actual salary offer.
Please view the Cooperative Education and Career Development Employer Handbook, which describes the role employers play in the co-op process. Students are your employees, exclusively, during the co-op period. They are full-time, temporary workers, and we request that they be treated in the same manner as other full-time staff.
When hiring a co-op student, consider the following responsibilities:
- Per federal law, a hired student is an employee, not a contractor.
- Throughout the co-op, ensure ample work related to the job accepted.
- Help student develop learning outcomes at the beginning of the co-op.
- Provide mentorship and training to student throughout the co-op.
- Notify your co-op coordinator of any concerns as they arise.
- Complete a student evaluation at the end of the co-op.
FAQs
Cooperative education, also known as co-op, is an educational model that allows students to alternate periods of full-time academic study with periods of full-time work in their areas of interest.
CAMD students choose Northeastern because of our required co-op program. Co-op allows them to gain valuable work experience in a firm or organization, explore new interests, learn more about career options, and develop a network of professionals.
The program offers a continual gateway to enthusiastic employees with developing skills and talents, as well as potential relationships with future colleagues. This partnership offers employers:
- A simple, cost-effective way to meet human resource needs: no fringe benefits, no recruitment costs: co-op students are paid as temporary hourly employees.
- Six-month co-op periods, with ample time for students to be productive and valuable employees (scheduling back-to-back co-op periods results in full-time coverage for on-going work).
- The enthusiasm, fresh perspective, and energy of talented young people eager to learn.
To post a position, contact Craig Bettinson, Director of Cooperative Education, for more information.
An organization is responsible for all hiring decisions and providing the student with adequate training to perform the job. The employer is asked to complete an evaluation form at the end of the work period with the student. The evaluation is a valuable instrument for honest communication, guidance as well as suggestions for further professional development.
No, employers do not have to pay a fee in order to be involved in the co-op program.
Students work for a four to eight-month period. It is possible for organizations to obtain year-round coverage by alternating students at the work site. Therefore, the co-op program can be used for both short or long-term hiring needs.
Northeastern’s co-op program enjoys a high success rate with its employers. Should a problem arise, contact the co-op coordinator as soon as possible. Remember that a co-op student is an employee of the organization and should expect to be treated as a member of the permanent staff.
The salary is determined by the employer. The typical salary range for CAMD student positions is based on skill level and experience. Co-op students are eligible for overtime pay as required by law. Benefits such as sick time, holidays and vacation are allotted at the employer’s discretion. The student’s health insurance is provided by the school and remains in effect while they are on the job.
Yes, once the employer receives the packet of resumes, they would contact the qualified candidates they would like to interview. Employers are not required to hire a co-op student if they feel there are no qualified candidates.
Although organizations are not making permanent hiring commitments when they employ co-op students, it has proven to be an effective recruitment tool. Co-op provides a trial period during which employers can assess a student’s long-term potential. Many students return to their previous co-op jobs for permanent employment.
If you would like to work with Northeastern please connect with your corresponding Co-op Coordinator:
- Architecture: Lynn Burke
- Art + Design: Isabel Dmitruk and Rachel Villari
- Communication and Media and Screen Studies: Emily Hornsby and Mark Bresnihan
- Game Design: Christina Roberts
- Journalism: Christina Roberts
- Music: Nancy Tarr
- Theatre: Nancy Tarr