Dear Co-op Student:
The following are the Guidelines for your work term report and your Employer’s Evaluation.
Please give the Performance Evaluation form to your work supervisor immediately upon starting
your job so that he or she will know what behaviors and performance criteria to observe and
evaluate. It is also your responsibility to ensure that your supervisor provides you with a copy
of your Performance Evaluation at the end of your period of employment, so that you may
submit the completed form with your Work Term Report.
Use the Work Term Report Guidelines in collecting information while you are on work term, and
in writing your Work Term Report. If you are on a double work term with the same employer,
submit only one report covering the entire eight months. If your double work terms are with
different employers, then submit 2 separate reports one for each employer with an evaluation
from each employer.
Reports for work terms are due one month after the end of a work term, e.g., September 30th, or
January 31st and should be submitted using the assignment drop box in D2L. Use the front page
of the guidelines as the cover sheet for your Work Term Report.
Work Terms are graded ‘pass’ or ‘fail’ and you must obtain a pass for a Work Term to receive
academic credit for it by receiving a minimum overall satisfactory rating for work performance
from your employer and a ‘pass’ for the report for that term.
All communication while on work terms will be done through your Ryerson email account,
please ensure that you check your email on a regular basis.
Best wishes for a successful work experience.
Professor Ray Moss,
Professor and Co-op Faculty Advisor
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INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE PREPARATION OF CO-OP WORK TERM REPORTS
You are required as a CO-OP program student to complete a work term report. The work term
report must:
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Reflect on your work experience. What did you do? What did you learn?
Demonstrate how the theoretical knowledge you acquired in your academic semester(s)
was applied to the job. How did your classroom learning apply to the work you were
performing? What gaps were there in your academics?
Link your work experience with future academic courses. How did this work term
prepare you for your next academic semester(s)?
What conclusions have you reached on how well the BTM program prepares you for the
working world?
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Regardless of the nature of your work experience, your report for a ‘single’ work
term (4 months) should be between 2500 – 3000 words. If the report covers a
‘double’ work term (8 months) with the same employer, it must be submitted as
one report and should be between 3,500 – 4,000 words.
2. If a double work term was with two different employers, it must be documented
as 2 separate reports.
3. The ‘length’ guideline refers to text only; graphics, charts, etc. (if necessary)
would be additional (show the ‘word count’ at the end of the report).
4. Reports should be in 12 point font, 1.5 lines spaced with 1 inch margins (top,
bottom and sides) using the designated report cover page. Headings and subheadings should be in Arial (or similar san serif font) with the main text in Times
New Roman (or similar serif font).
5. Reports are due one month after the end of a work term, e.g. September 30th, or
January 31st (or the next day of school). Submit your report using the assignment
drop box in D2L
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Use the headings and content suggestions provided below.
I.
COMPANY/CLIENT ORGANIZATION
This section may include some background about the organization, its history, number of
employees, sales volume, future plans, etc. Keep this simple and to the point. What information
does the reader need to make sense of what your job was with the organization?
II.
DETAILED JOB DESCRIPTION
Describe the job you performed during the work term/s; provide details of the responsibilities,
duties, tasks, etc. If your job had a formal job description use it as a base document (Do not
submit it but use the information in the text of your report) and provide further details where
appropriate (job descriptions typically do not cover all the details of the actual job).
III. ACCOMPLISHMENTS/ACHIEVEMENTS
Describe the results you achieved; tasks you performed successfully; projects you completed, or
with which you assisted. What do you regard as a special achievement? Did you receive any
commendations or were you praised for good work, meeting deadlines, etc.? What was your one
achievement of which you are most proud? Did you perhaps form a positive relationship with
your supervisor to the extent that he/she might be a reference for future jobs or a lead for career
employment when you graduate?
IV. APPLYING WHAT I LEARNED
What did you apply of your learning from your courses; give specific examples linking a course
to on-the-job application. How did what you learned in ITM-XXX, MHR-XXX, QMS-XXX,
etc., helped you to do your job, or do it better, faster? Don’t just play lip service but provide
critical thought to this as it assists in curriculum development. What really helped and what
could be further strengthened?
V. WHAT ADDITIONAL COURSE CONTENT WOULD HAVE HELPED
Highlight what you wished you had learned in your previous courses (if that is the case) that may
have helped you in the job. Take the time to consider this carefully as it is valuable feedback for
curriculum planning. How academically prepared did you feel you were for tasks you were
assigned?
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V. USING ON-THE-JOB EXPERIENCE IN FUTURE COURSES
Consider the courses that you will be taking when you return for your academic semester/s to
link how what you learned on the job may enhance these courses. This requires that you examine
the course content (use the course outlines; scan the text books) and associate what you learned
on the job with the subject matter of the future courses, to see how your work experience may
make these courses more meaningful.
You may add another heading/section (at your option) to describe anything of note that happened
during your work experience, possibly including observations about the corporate culture of the
organization in which you worked; the leadership style/s of your supervisor and other managers;
improvements to processes and practices you would suggest (perhaps have suggested or have
made); interesting aspects of the organization or unit in which you worked, social activities
during your work term (company picnic; baseball game; golf tournament), etc.
VI. EVALUATING MY PROGRESS USING THE LEARNING OUTCOMES GRID
The Learning Outcomes Grid helps you to locate what you know and what you can do in a grid
that covers key knowledge areas. It will help you to track and reflect on your progress as you go
through your five Co-op Work Terms. The details about how to use the GRID are attached as
Appendix A.
You are to fill out the GRID by rating your knowing/doing competence in the different
knowledge areas. Some areas will reflect your course learning and others will reflect your onthe-job learning. Be as honest and specific as possible. Do not expect to be at the top of every
area!
Once you have filled out the GRID, pick two or three areas to comment on in your report. In
what section of the GRID do you think you have progressed the most? What role has “school”
versus “work” played in your development? Where do you think you need or want to progress
more? What does that mean for your course selection and/or what you might look for in your
next Work Term? Overall, how satisfied are you with your progress? Do you have an action plan
to address any gaps you have identified? Briefly explain your plan.
Try to avoid repeating what you have already written!
Be sure to attach the completed GRID with your report.
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CO-OP WORK TERM R E P O R T COVER PAGE
Student Name:
WKT NUMBER:
Student Number:
Employer:
Division/Department/Unit:
Your Job Title:
Supervisor's Name:
Title:
Telephone:
Email:
Period of Employment--From:
_ To:
Total Actual Hours Worked in this Period:
Date Submitted:
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APPENDIX A: The Learning Outcomes Grid
Explanation of Knowledge Areas
The Knowledge Areas are based on the body of knowledge that has been defined for ITM (BTM)
graduates. This body of knowledge comprises:
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
Foundational Knowledge (Personal and Interpersonal; Business; Technology);
Core Knowledge ( Technology in Business; Processes, Projects and Change); and
Integrative Knowledge (Integration of all Knowledge Areas).
Each of these knowledge areas is described below.
Foundational Knowledge
Area
Personal &
Interpersonal
Business
Technology
Overview
Making meaningful
contributions through
self-knowledge and
ability to have
constructive, long term
interactions with others
Having the broad
appreciation of the
context of business and
working knowledge of
efficient and effective
business conduct
Designing,
implementing and
operating information
technology
Examples of Competencies
Self-awareness and self-mastery; oral and written
communications; leadership; ethical awareness; problemsolving and conflict resolution; group dynamics and processes
and the systems to support this work.
Role of business in society and the global economy; business
design and models; different functional areas of business and
how they interrelate; risk management; supply management;
business decision-making
Current and future trends in IT; software development
methodologies and lifecycle; infrastructure and architecture;
overall application and technology landscape lifecycle;
planning, designing, integrating/implementing and operating
contemporary technologies; role, management and uses of
information for business
Core Knowledge
Area
Technology
in Business
Processes,
Projects and
Change
Overview
Technology as enabler
of change, critical to
competitiveness,
innovation,
effectiveness of
productivity
Leverage technology to
enable organizations to
change
Examples of Competencies
Optimize IT contribution to strategy, competitiveness,
innovation, decision-making; IT impact on individuals, groups,
organizations and societies; structure, impact and business
value of domestic and international IT industries; IT
economics and governance.
Organizational learning and innovation processes; business
process analysis; project management; business change
management.
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Integrative Knowledge
This knowledge area incorporates and integrates all other knowledge areas. There are seven Learning
Outcomes that would be gained through co-op studies and project-based courses. The learning
outcomes are:
To demonstrate the ability to
1. Effectively plan, manage and lead a business technology project
2. Understand and analyze a business problem including collect relevant information, describe
options and risks, and make recommendations
3. Appropriately use relevant techniques such as systems thinking and quantitative analysis
4. Analyze a business process, develop the “to be” design, and then to create the implementation
plan and the business change management plan to implement this design
5. Analyze a business need, develop a Request for (Proposal or Information), evaluate the
responses and structure a contract with the successful vendor.
6. Evaluate the effectiveness, appropriateness and usability of an implemented information
system.
7. Evaluate a new technology, understand its strengths and weaknesses, evaluate its usefulness to
solve business problems and communicate the results.
Explanation of Competency Levels
The Competency levels are based on “knowing” versus “doing” competencies. Knowing incorporates
levels 1 and 2 while Doing incorporates levels 3 and 4. Each competency level is described below.
Level 4: Able to perform (put elements together into a clear or functional whole or
reorganize into a new pattern – includes generating, planning, producing)
DOING
KNOWING
Level 3: Able to analyze and evaluate by breaking information in to components,
differentiating, organizing, attributing, etc. and making judgments based on criteria
and standards through testing and critiquing
Level 2: Able to explain and apply by communicating or carrying out a procedure
Level 1: Able to recall and understand relevant knowledge and interpret, classify,
summarize, etc.
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LEARNING OUTCOMES GRID
Knowledge
Area Types
Knowledge Areas
Refer to entire ITM degree program
Foundational
Core
Personal and
Interpersonal
Business
Technology
Competency
Technology
in Business
CO-OP
Integrative
Processes,
Projects &
Change
Integrative
KNOWING
DOING
Level 4:
Able to
perform
Level 3:
Able to
analyze and
evaluate
Level 2:
Able to
explain and
apply
Level 1:
Able to
recall and
understand
Updated August 2015
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