Course Format

Class Meetings

There will be fourteen mandatory class meetings throughout the school year and one Poster Event at the end of the academic year. Of the fourteen meetings, there will be six practical sessions, three writing instruction workshops, a session to formally introduce yourselves to each other, one alumni networking event, and three sessions devoted to helping you prepare your poster for the end of the year event. The practical sessions will feature guest speakers who will focus on practical skills and information relevant to employment. Attendance at all of these meetings is absolutely crucial. Part of the course mark will be based on students’ attendance. More importantly, because your assignments will be based on the activities covered in class (particularly the practical sessions), you will find that your absences from class will not only negatively impact your attendance mark, but will make it nearly impossible to complete the assignments. 

 

Assignments

Throughout the course of the year, you will be turning in six short assignments, and a rough draft of your final report; in the majority of the cases, the assignment will be linked to one of the practical sessions or workshops. These assignments are designed to help students delve deeper into some of the information provided there. They will vary in format and content but will normally include a short writing assignment, approximately 4-5 pages in length. Because your course mark is heavily dependent on your writing quality, it is important that you pay specific attention to the Writing Rubrics that will accompany each of the writing assignments to understand which aspects of writing will be focused and marked on. A sample rubric is included in the folder provided to you on the first day of class. If you are not confident about your writing skills, you are encouraged to seek additional help with your assignments from the course TA or from the Academic Skills Center.

 

Work Activity Log

Students are asked to keep a log of the days, times, and places they worked, activities undertaken, and any other relevant information. This is the type of record required by Revenue Canada for persons who are self-employed. The Work Activity Log will provide a small component of the course assessment. At the end of the year, the Work Activity Log must demonstrate that the student has successfully completed the required 200-hour work commitment. 

 

Individual Meetings and Midterm Progress Report 

At the beginning of each month starting in October, the course director will make an appointment with each student to meet individually. Students are encouraged to discuss the details of their project or any issues of concern with the instructor. In the winter, the individual meetings will be held on a voluntary basis. However, if you are facing a difficult work situation or just need someone to talk to, you are encouraged to make an appointment with the instructor outside the usually scheduled individual meetings.

 

Final Written Report

The Final Written Report will be submitted at the end of the winter term in March. The format of the report will differ from student to student, depending on the nature of the work undertaken. The written submission should be professional, and representative of the work completed over the course of the year. Students will be given considerable freedom in designing their submissions, but examples of excellent and poorly-written reports will be provided to you as guidance. A writing session in the winter term will be devoted to discussing this report.

 

Poster Session

Towards the end of the academic year, the ECO400Y interns will present their professional accomplishments through a poster session. Additional details regarding the session and specifics on the poster will be provided at a later date. Employers, Deans, UTM staff and faculty, and other interested students will be invited to attend this event.