As we welcome 2026, we’d like to take a moment to reflect on 2025 and celebrate our co-op students’ impressive achievements. Our annual Co-op Year in Review highlights employment data and statistics from the past year, shares feedback from both employers and students, and recognizes our 2025 Student of the Year.
Despite a slowdown in overall employment growth in Canada compared to the peaks of 2023–24, co-op work terms increased by 7% since 2024. We’re proud to share that 2025 saw the highest number of work terms secured in our program’s history. This growth reflects your dedication, adaptability, and resilience in a challenging job market, as well as employers’ continued confidence in the value you bring to their teams.
In fall 2025, the Co-op Program also welcomed 1392 new undergraduate students into the program. We’re excited to support an expanding group of students as they begin their career journeys.
2025 HIGHLIGHTS
Placement Data
Applied Science Co-op students secured a record 3,258 work terms in 2025. This achievement reflects an overall placement rate of 79%, including 90% in Winter, 70% in Summer, and 87% in Fall.
| Program | Winter 2025 | Summer 2025 | Fall 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Architecture | 83% | 76% | 86% |
| Biomedical | 91% | 67% | 82% |
| Chemical & Biological | 95% | 65% | 89% |
| Civil* | 96% | 81% | 95% |
| Computer* | 75% | 62% | 78% |
| Electrical* | 90% | 70% | 83% |
| Environmental | 93% | 70% | 82% |
| Geological | 86% | 88% | 100% |
| Integrated | 90% | 65% | 93% |
| Manufacturing* | 97% | 63% | 83% |
| Materials | 100% | 61% | 92% |
| Mechanical* | 93% | 72% | 89% |
| Mining | 94% | 95% | 100% |
| Total | 90% | 70% | 87% |
* Students from both UBC campuses.
** You’ll notice a drop in placement rates during the Summer term. This occurs because many more students are available and actively seeking positions during the scheduled Summer break, which increases competition for available roles.
Employer Engagement Data
We’d like to recognize our top industry co-op employers who supported an exceptional number of students in 2025. The table below highlights our Top 10 Industry Employers and the number of work terms secured with each. While the University of British Columbia was the top overall employer of APSC Coop students in 2025, academic institutions are not included in this list. A special acknowledgement goes to Ledcor, Metro Vancouver, and Tesla, which together provided 183 work terms for APSC Co-op students.
Beyond these top contributors, employer engagement continued to grow. The PD Portal job board saw 10,805 total postings, a 22.5% increase in total postings compared to 2024, including 762 postings from 426 new companies. More than 1200 students attended events directly supported by the Coop Office. Our Business Development team continues to strengthen relationships with employer partners, and our students remain proactive in sourcing opportunities through external applications.
| Employer | Work Term Count |
| 1. Ledcor Group of Companies | 67 |
| 2. Metro Vancouver | 62 |
| 3. Tesla | 54 |
| 4. Suncor Energy | 53 |
| 5. Synopsys Inc. | 51 |
| 6. Kardium | 49 |
| 7. AMD Inc. | 46 |
| 8. Transportation Investment Corp. | 31 |
| 9. Glencore | 29 |
| 10. BC Hydro | 28 |
| 10. ATCO Ltd. | 28 |
Location Data
This map shows the geographic distribution of APSC Co-op work terms across Canada. While students gained experience nationwide, 73% of those were in British Columbia. Of that 73%, 63% of work terms were based in the Lower Mainland, 1% were on Vancouver Island and 9% were elsewhere in BC. Many students also pursued international opportunities, including placements in the United States, China, Germany, and Japan.
Top international Placement Countries
- United States - 2.79%
- China - 1.32%
- Germany - 1.01%
- Japan - 0.49%
- Thailand - 0.15%
Salary Data
The table below, available on our website, outlines the monthly salaries for APSC Co-op students in industry positions across Canada in 2025. Please note that Co-op students must be paid at least the provincial or territorial minimum wage and must complete a minimum of 420 hours over a four-month term.
The average monthly salary across all disciplines was $4,461, representing a 3.2% increase from 2024. This growth is approximately 1% higher than the estimated annual inflation rate.
| Program | Minimum | Maximum | Median | Average | Data Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARCHITECTURE, LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AND URBANISM | $3082 | $4680 | $4063 | $4068 | 40 |
| BIOMEDICAL | $2795 | $5546 | $3800 | $3738 | 146 |
| CHEMICAL & BIOLOGICAL | $3033 | $7194 | $4507 | $4620 | 220 |
| CIVIL* | $3185 | $7135 | $4388 | $4421 | 467 |
| COMPUTER* | $2800 | $9187 | $4394 | $4719 | 288 |
| ELECTRICAL* | $2860 | $7131 | $4333 | $4478 | 489 |
| ENVIRONMENTAL | $3204 | $5546 | $4550 | $4472 | 63 |
| GEOLOGICAL | $3987 | $7393 | $4713 | $4798 | 31 |
| INTEGRATED | $2712 | $8061 | $4195 | $4309 | 129 |
| MANUFACTURING* | $3120 | $5562 | $3900 | $4052 | 113 |
| MATERIALS | $2730 | $6333 | $4261 | $4420 | 67 |
| MECHANICAL* | $2811 | $6933 | $4160 | $4289 | 521 |
| MINING | $4160 | $7583 | $5165 | $5375 | 72 |
| MASTERS* | $3087 | $8150 | $5022 | $5066 | 172 |
* Students from both UBC campuses.
Shout Outs!
Employers Love Hiring APSC Co-op Students
The UBC Applied Science Co-op Program provides highly skilled, motivated, and well-prepared students who make meaningful contributions to projects in both the short and long term. It has been an excellent way to identify and train potential future employees while also addressing immediate recruitment needs.
I highly recommend this program. It fosters a mutually beneficial relationship between students and companies; while students gain valuable hands-on experience and develop industry-relevant skills, companies benefit from fresh perspectives and additional support.
I have now supervised 3 undergraduate students as part of this co-op program and I am consistently impressed at the caliber of students. The co-op office make hiring very straightforward, and communication is clear and non-excessive. I really appreciate the co-op program."
The program offers a chance to mentor the next generation, as well as provide insight from a cold eyes perspective to the methods in which you perform your daily activities."
I would highly recommend the UBC Applied Science Co-op Program for recruitment because our experience with students from this program has been consistently exceptional. We have had many co-op students on our team, and all of them have demonstrated strong technical proficiency along with outstanding soft skills. They are quick learners who adapt rapidly, communicate effectively, and work equally well both in team settings and independently."
Quotes From Students
I think the co-op program in it's foundation is very strong. There are a lot of opportunities, excellent resources, and brilliant individuals there to help you succeed. These 3 combined with the student's determination to learn, grow and improve is what makes getting a coop job almost guaranteed. Once a student gets a taste of a co-op job, they get to experience what they might be doing for a great portion of their life, they get to understand how things work in the real world beyond the theoretical learning in the classrooms. So I would definitely rate the UBC Applied Science Co-op Program very highly, as they truly prepare you for success."
Co-op has helped me grow, get to know myself better, and feel more comfortable expressing my personality in the workplace.
I would have felt so overwhelmed finding my first job as an International student, the co-op program makes all resources easily accessible and I truly think it helped paved my way for my future career."
Student of the Year
Congratulations to Juan Diego Balestrini Freundt Thurne, our 2025 Applied Science Co-op Student of the Year Award Winner! Juan Diego is an undergraduate student in Mechanical Engineering pursuing the mechatronics specialization. He completed two co-op work terms with Miru Smart Technologies working to upgrade mechanical engineering facilities, and most recently completed two co-op work terms with Red Rabbit working in robotics development for automated manufacturing. At Red Rabbit he was able to make impressive technical contributions, but also engage with company leaders to gain insight on product planning and business strategy, and even publicly represent the company at a trade show.
Within the UBC community, Juan Diego served as Captain of Open Robotics where he honed his robotics skills and applied learnings from his co-op experiences. He took initiative to support teammates with their co-op goals by organizing resume and interview workshops for his peers, and even made connections between his co-op network and UBC to promote students for future opportunities. From his supervisor at Red Rabbit: “JD’s impact at Red Rabbit Robotics went far beyond his defined co-op role. Through his mentorship, outreach, and community building efforts, JD has made a lasting impact not only on our organization but also on how we engage future engineers.”
Congratulations, Juan Diego!
Looking Ahead
As we enter 2026, we encourage you to continue to access all the APSC Co-op Program resources including career coaching with your assigned advisor and the many industry engagement opportunities. Thank you for a wonderful 2025 and we look forward to supporting you in 2026!