Work&Travel

Work and Travel is the most popular program of international cultural exchange (more than 100 000 students every year) that allows students from different countries of the world to depart on summer vacations to the USA, Canada, Poland, Ukraine to work and travel. The Summer Work Travel program provides foreign students with an opportunity to live and work during their summer vacation from college or university to experience and to be exposed to the people and way of life in the USA, Canada, Poland, Ukraine

Work & Travel Canada

The InterExchange Work & Travel Canada program gives U.S. young adults the chance to experience Canada while taking on seasonal jobs. Whether you already have a job in mind or just want to experience the country and pick up work along the way, our program gives you a leg up and a smoother transition. Participating on this program means that you will be a participant on the International Experience Canada (IEC) – Travel and Work program, meaning you will have one year during which you can work, travel and live in Canada.

Arrival and Orientation

Once you have your approval to travel you are welcome to enter Canada on any date. You should allow several weeks to complete the InterExchange and IEC work permit applications. In many cases the whole process has taken about eight weeks (based on typical processing times in 2016 and subject to change). The program includes an optional orientation session in Toronto or Vancouver, covering the job search, logistics of living and working in Canada, finding housing and more. Whether you start in one of these two cities or pass through them at a later date you are welcome to attend a session any Thursday. If you’re out of the way you are welcome to touch base with the InterExchange partner organization through phone or email throughout your program.

Travel

Your permit will allow you to stay in the country for one year and we recommend taking as much of this time as you can to experience the beauty of Canada. Many participants travel for the summer only but if you can add a few extra weeks, do it! You will receive updates through social media and a regular newsletter on social activities and happenings around the country.

Work

The International Experience Canada (IEC) Travel and Work program is meant as a chance to explore Canada with the option to take on seasonal jobs for a maximum of one year. Many participants already have an idea of what they will be doing in Canada but others travel without a job lined up and take advantage of the job support provided by our partner in Canada. This is up to you. If you have a specific date in mind to travel please consider the time it takes to complete the InterExchange and IEC applications. Most participants take on work in fields including hospitality (restaurants, bars, hostels, hotels, etc.), travel and tourism or seasonal work at ski resorts or summer camps. Manual labor positions and office temping are also possible. Many jobs don’t require previous experience so don’t worry if you haven’t worked before. Note that there are restrictions on working in health care, child care or primary or secondary education. Also, if you’re hoping to work in Montreal or surrounds you may need French language experience.

Education in Canada

Higher education in Canada is considered one of the best in the world. Many experts put it on the 2nd place after the US. Four Canadian universities included in the top 100 best universities in the world, five business schools – in the top 100 best business schools in the world. Every year, Canada accepts more than 200 000 foreign students and this figure is growing annually. To date, 13 Canadian provinces, there are more than 260 universities that offer students training for a very wide range of specialties. The Canadian high schools enrolled about 1.8 million students.

In Canada, there are two types of higher education institutions: the state (public) and private (private). The largest and most well-known are the state universities. Common Ministry of Education in Canada, not all universities are subject to provincial governments where they are located. Most universities are called “university” and “college”. They differ from each other so that the colleges do not have the right to assign a master’s degree (Masters degree) and Doctor of Science (PhD), is the prerogative of the universities. Universities are divided according to the profile: universities / colleges, technical institutes, art colleges, military colleges and others. Traditionally, the colleges more accentuated on the job and career (working knowledge), and the universities of science (theoretical knowledge). Vocational education is provided by colleges and technical institutes. Research carried out in universities: more than 1/3 of all the scientific research conducted at the university.

The school year begins in Canadian universities 2-3 times a year: January, May or September.

Education is carried out on a full-time, part-time, distance learning forms. In addition, there are forms of education are not typical for Europe and Ukraine: fast track and the co-op education. The first involves the accelerated training, for example, when the program 2-year course of study studied for 1 year. Second – it is a form of learning in which the theoretical lessons in the classroom are alternated with the real work in the factories. On the full-time form of education students attend classes on weekdays, 3-5 days a week. Students can form their own training schedule, recording on courses and visiting them in a convenient time. The study is based on a credit system, where for each subject is calculated a few credits. In the year you need to dial a certain number of credits to successfully complete the school year and move on to the next course. A large part of learning associated autonomous mastery of information, is deeply integrated into the Internet, which requires students to a high self-organization. Essays and other homework done remotely via the Internet. The concept “study group”, where for 4-5 years alongside students studying in Canada is absent. Part-time form of education is not available for international students. In the correspondence department can study only Canadian citizens or persons with a residence permit in Canada. The school year consists of two or three semesters: winter, summer and autumn. The winter semester lasts from the beginning of January to the end of April. Summer semester – from early May to mid-August. Fall semester – from September 2 to the end of December. At the end of each semester to be exams. On average, 3-4 is studntov exam each session. The total duration of the school year about thirty weeks.

The educational process consists of lectures, practical classes, laboratory works. Lectures and workshops are very interesting, because the students are actively involved in the process through discussions, deliberations, decisions of cases, tasks, etc.

Each province in Canada has its own system of evaluation of students’ knowledge. For example, this system is common in Ontario:

• perfect (A), 80% and higher;
• very good (B), 70-79%;
• good (C), 60-69%;
• satisfactorily (D), 50-59%;
• unsatisfactorily (F) 49% and lower.

Education in Canadian universities is conducted in both English and French. French Education is less common in Canada as completely French-speaking province of Quebec is the only. Tuition fees in Canadian universities “starts” from 10 000 Canadian dollars per year. On average, in the English language training costs 13 000 – 14 000 Canadian dollars per year. The quality of teaching is one of the highest in the world. The quality of higher education Canada ranks 2nd among the developed countries (OECD). Diplomas Canadian institutions of higher learning recognized in all countries of the world. The level of trust and recognition of diplomas in the world of Canadian college and university diplomas are comparable to those obtained in the US, UK and Australia. Additional confirmation of them is not required.

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