WELCOME
Welcome to the third edition of the WACE Newsletter aimed at helping you stay connected to Co-operative & Work Integrated Education (CWIE) happenings across the globe. WACE is the only international professional organization dedicated to developing, expanding, branding and advocating for cooperative & work-integrated education programs within industry and educational institutions.
In this newsletter, we are excited to announce the dates for the next WACE World Virtual Conference 2021 and our next Global Conversation #4. In addition, there are updates on the WACE Global Student Collaborative Project, we welcome one of our new members, the University of Central Asia in the WACE New Member profile, provide National Association updates and information on upcoming professional development opportunities There is also recent CWIE news, a valuable WIL resource, and the announcement of the COVID -19 special editions of the International Journal of WIL.
We welcome your feedback and any updates you would like to include in future editions.
Dr. Nancy Johnston, Ms. Judie Kay, Dr. Norah McRae, Dr. Jim Stellar
WACE Secretariat
WACE NEWS
WACE WORLD VIRTUAL CONFERENCE 2021 – SAVE THE DATES
Theme: Navigating New Work-Integrated Horizons
When: May 11-13, 2021
An innovative online conference that will bring together the global WIL community to explore work-integrated learning and its important role in the emerging world of work.
More details including abstract submission coming very shortly!
WACE GLOBAL STUDENT COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS UPDATE
This exciting pilot of this project is about to commence in partnership with Practera, an edtech company with 9 WACE members from across 8 countries. Institutions that are involved are:
- DHBW Baden-Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University, Germany
- Drexel University, USA
- Kanazawa Institute of Technology, Japan
- Namibia University of Science and Technology, Namibia
- University of Canberra, Australia
- University of Central Asia, Kyrgystan
- University of Victoria, Canada
- University of Waterloo, Canada
- University of Limerick, Ireland
Outcomes of the pilot will be shared with the WACE community in the next newsletter. More details are available here.
BECOME A WACE MEMBER
Consider joining WACE as members have access to member-only programmes and discounts for the many events and professional development planned for 2020 / 2021.
Memberships for the next year are now open. Full member benefits, fees and application details are here.
WACE MEMBER PROFILES
WACE WARMLY WELCOMES THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ASIA AS ONE OF OUR NEW WACE MEMBERS
The University of Central Asia (UCA) was founded in 2000 as a private, not for profit, secular university through an International Treaty signed by the Presidents of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, and His Highness the Aga Khan; ratified by their respective parliaments, and registered with the United Nations. The Presidents are the Patrons of the University, and His Highness is the Chancellor. UCA’s mission is to promote the social and economic development of Central Asia, particularly its mountain communities, by offering an internationally recognized standard of higher education, and enabling the peoples of the region to preserve their rich cultural heritage as assets for the future. UCA brings with it the broader commitment and partnership of the Aga Khan Development Network.
At the Naryn Campus Inauguration Ceremony on October 19th of 2016, His Highness Aga Khan, highlighted that the Treaty was a unique example to the entire world of how these three countries could join hands together across national boundaries and actually dream together about their common future.
The mission of the university is to promote the social and economic development of Central Asia, particularly its mountain societies, by offering an internationally recognized standard of higher education and helping the different peoples of the region to preserve and draw upon their rich cultural traditions and heritages as assets for the future. Therefore, all three campuses in each of the countries are located away from the major cities in small mountainous towns.
The University of Central Asia’s (UCA) Co-operative Education Program is a work-integrated learning program where students apply in-class learning to real-life professional experiences within the field of study across private, public, and community-based sectors. This program offers paid and non-paid internships and prepares students for both academic and career success beyond university. UCA’s Co-op Program was developed in partnership with the University of Victoria, Canada.
UCA’s Co-operative Education Program offers:
- Experiential learning in the workplace
- Application of knowledge and skills in practice
- Networking with the professionals
- Professional Development course
- Full or part-time summer and winter job placements
- 9 months of work experience
- On-campus employment
The program is mandatory for UCA all undergraduate students. It is an innovative immersion initiative that creates opportunities for students to experience the working world, domestically and internationally, via structured job placements in three consecutive summers during your five-year university education.
In 2019, 300 work placements were available in 94 companies including international, government and non-governmental organizations, and private companies. The 2019 Co-op Program was supported by 42 international, 42 private, 3 governmental, and 7 non – governmental organizations in the Central Asia region and beyond. The placements were available in the founding states and in other countries (Canada, Check Republic, Russia, Germany and USA).
To learn more about UCA visit their website here or watch a brief UCA video here
NATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
WIL AROUND THE WORLD
WACE brings together national associations from across the world regularly to share practice, research and strategy.
