SWPP Funding
Student Work Placement Program (SWPP) Funding
The Government of Canada’s Student Work Placement Program (SWPP), delivered by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) gives post-secondary students across Canada paid work experience related to their field of study. The SWPP program:
- provides wage subsidies to employers that offer quality student work placements; and
- create partnerships with universities, colleges, and other higher education institutions to recruit students for these placements.
How to Get Started
Our employer team can help you to prepare, post, and process an eligible student-employment role. Here are the steps:
Contact Our Team
Our employer support team can help you, in advance, as you prepare to navigate some of the complexities involved with securing funding, such as:
- which of ESDC’s funding partners to approach;
- how to confirm your organization’s eligibility
- how to meet student eligibility criteria such as formal ‘work-integrated learning’ recognition;
- which students and programs to target, and how;
- how to increase the chances of obtaining supplementary funding for hiring students from under-represented groups.
Pre-Register with a Funding Partner
When you’re ready to proceed, your organization will want to register your intentions to seek reimbursement for the eligible portion of the wages of your eligible student employment. SWPP funds are managed and dispersed by ESDC’s various funding partners through varied processes. The typical amounts are:
- Up to $5,000 for every student you hire through the program
- Up to $7,000 for every student you hire that is in their first year or is from an under-represented groups.
Apply for Reimbursement
At the end of the student’s employment period, your organization will follow the process for reimbursement laid out by the SWPP funding partner. This is the step that makes contacting our team in advance so helpful. When you hire a McMaster student, our employer support team can help you to confirm the information you need, depending on the funding partner’s needs and processes, including:
- how to confirm the student’s enrolment in a formal work-integrated learning program (e.g. co-op, required placement, etc.);
- how to navigate the question of the student’s membership in an under-represented group;
- how to confirm other required student-eligibility criteria.
Employer Delivery Partner Options
The Government of Canada delivers the SWPP program through several ‘Employer Delivery Partners‘. Each of these partners manages its own processes and/or platforms. Please confirm all details for the most updated and accurate information.
Several of the available options for partnership and funding may be of particular interest to employers seeking student talent from the social sciences, liberal arts, and interdisciplinary fields:
Ontario Chamber of Commerce Review on Chamber Website
The Talent Opportunities Program (TOP) supports Canadian businesses or non-profits to hire students from any program or discipline.
Tourism HR Canada View on Tourism HR Canada Site
The Propel Student Work Placement Program supports the growth of a vibrant and skilled tourism sector by connecting students in any discipline with tourism employers for paid, hands-on learning opportunities. Students can be from any program, and do not need to be in a tourism- or hospitality-specific program to be eligible, or to work in this sector.
Cultural Human Resources Canada View on CHRC Website
The CHRC’s iteration of the SWPP program supports Canadian cultural sector employers to hire students from any program for placements in the cultural sector. Cultural sector employers include Digital Media (Content Creators); Film and Television; Live Performing Arts; Music and Sound Recording; Visual Arts and Crafts; Writing and Publishing; and Heritage. Note: the student’s field of study does not have to be related to arts and culture.
Information and Communications Technology Council Learn More on ICTC Program Site
The ICTC’s WIL Digital program supports employers in the Digital Economy with wage subsidies to hire students participating in courses or programs with work-integrated-learning components.
Canadian Media Producers Association Learn More on the CMPA Site
The CMPA’s version of the SWPP program provides subsidies to employer mentors in the film, television and interactive production industry who wish to contribute to a student mentee’s work-integrated learning (WIL) in a paid employment experience context.
Electricity Human Resources Canada (EHRC) Learn More on EHRC Site
The Empowering Futures program of the EHRC provides wage subsidies to employers in the electricity industry and support sectors, including renewables.
Canadian Agricultural Human Resources Council (CAHRC) Learn More on CAHRC Site
The CAHRC ‘Agri-Talen’ program provides student-hiring subsidies to Canadian organization related to agricultural, such as food growers to retailers, nursery, horticulture, and ag-tech firms, are eligible to apply under this program.
Environmental Student Work Placement Program (ECO Canada) Visit ECO Canada's Site
ECO Canada focuses their iteration of the SWPP funding program on the STEAM & Business fields, which often have crossover with McMaster Social Sciences disciplines.
Food Processing Skills Canada (FPSC) Learn More on the FPSC Site
Food Processing Skills Canada’s Student Work Placement Program+ has made it easy for employers in Canada’s food and beverage manufacturing industry to connect with college and university students for work terms.
Contact Our Team
To discuss your SWPP application planning or any related hiring needs, you can email our employer support account or reach out to any member of our employer development team:
Rachel Jones
Career Development and Relationship Manager
