IDM 2982 / 3982 / 4982* CO-OP COURSE

University of Manitoba
I. H. Asper School of Business
Co-operative Education Program
Summer 2016
IDM 2982 / 3982 / 4982* CO-OP COURSE
Faculty Advisor:
Office:
Office Hours:
Sean MacDonald
364 Drake
By appointment
Telephone:
E-mail:
204 474 7891
[email protected]
INTRODUCTION
The Asper School of Business Co-operative Education Program enables students to integrate academic
studies with on-the-job experiential learning. The program consists of three work terms and this course
outline applies to each of the three work terms. Each work term students are employed full-time for a
minimum period of 12 weeks. After the successful completion of a co-op course (one work term)
students will earn one credit hour and be permitted to continue in the co-op program. To successfully
complete a co-op course a minimum grade of C must be obtained.
Students must make themselves familiar with the I. H. Asper School of Business Co-operative
Education Program Academic Regulations. This document is available upon request from the Asper
School of Business Co-operative Education Program Office.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The overall objectives of this course are to:
1. combine academic and on-the-job learning by providing students the opportunity to develop and
apply skills learned in the classroom in a business-related job;
2. enhance students' personal and professional growth;
3. assist students in determining their majors and career paths; and
4. improve students' employability.
LEARNING GOALS
This course will also address the following learning goals:
1. Communication: students will develop their written communication skills by completing their
Learning Objectives and Work Term Reports.
2. Goal Setting: students will develop skills in setting meaningful and measurable objectives for
each work term.
1
3. Critical Thinking: students will be expected to apply concepts learned in the classroom to onthe-job situations.
4. Self Evaluation and Reflection: students will be expected to reflect on and communicate:
• what they learned from their work experience;
• whether they were able to achieve their learning objectives; and
• how their work experience will affect their future endeavors on academic, professional and
personal levels.
MARK ALLOCATION
Learning Objectives Report, due May 24, 2016
25%
Work Term Report, due September 12, 2016
75%
(*for work term 3 only, a copy of your updated resume
100%
must be submitted with your work term report on UM
Learn to receive a passing grade in the course – no marks
are allocated for the resume but it is a required component
of your work term three completion)
The final grade of a report submitted after the due date will be reduced by 5% of the maximum
grade of the report for each 24 hour period.
Any report that exceeds the deadline by 10 days will receive a grade of F on the
report.
Students earning a grade of less than 60% on either the Learning Objectives Report or Work Term
Report will be required to redo/revise their report. The revised report must be submitted within five
working days of the date the request for a redo was communicated. The maximum final grade of the
revised report is 60%.
Students will be awarded a letter grade for each co-op course based on the following scale:
Numeric Grade
90% - 100%
80% - 89.9%
75% - 79.9%
70% - 74.9%
65% - 69.9%
60% - 64.9%
50% - 59.9%
0% - 49.9%
Letter Grade
A+
A
B+
B
C+
C
D
F
Students achieving a grade of less than C in any co-op course will be required to withdraw from the
program.
2
LEARNING OBJECTIVES REPORT
Since one of the objectives of the course is to combine academic and on-the-job learning, students are
required to set learning objectives for the work term. The learning objectives will describe the
measurable goals that students aspire to achieve during their work term.
The learning objectives should be meaningful to the student and relevant to his/her job and career
aspirations. Learning objectives should be developed after the first one or two weeks of employment once details of the job are known. While forming learning objectives students should take into account
the specific responsibilities of their job, their job supervisor's goals for the student, as well as their
personal strengths and weaknesses, past job experiences, and knowledge obtained through courses. The
learning objectives should be reviewed and approved by the student's supervisor on the job.
The learning objectives should be SMART:
• specific
• measurable
• agreed upon
• realistic
• timely
A specific learning objective clearly states what the goal is, for example, "I will improve my written
communication skills as evidenced by the weekly reports I prepare". "I will improve my
communication skills" is too vague.
A measurable learning objective offers criteria for measuring progress towards the goal, for
example, "I will improve my written communication skills by preparing weekly reports that require
no editing by my manager before they are passed on to the management team". The learning
objective specifically indicates how the student will know the learning objective has been met and
also specifically indicates who will measure the success of meeting the learning objective.
An agreed upon learning objective will be meaningful to both the student and the job supervisor.
Realistic learning objectives are achievable given the job responsibilities, experience, knowledge
and temperament of the student. Goals should be high enough to require a reasonable degree of
effort to ensure substantial learning takes place during the work term.
Learning objectives must include a time frame indicating when the goals should be accomplished.
The learning objectives report should include four to six goals incorporating hard skills goals, soft skills
goals and task based goals. Hard skills are technical skills, such as auditing procedures and software
applications. Soft skills include personal skills such as work habits, communication skills and analytical
skills. Task based goals include the completion of job-related tasks, such as the completion of a
marketing survey.
3
The report must be completed in MS Word format (please do not send as a PDF File) and uploaded to
UM Learn (formerly D2L). The cover page of the report must include:
• the title "Learning Objectives Work Term One"
• student name
• student ID number
• phone number
• email address
• major (if known)
• date
• employer
• position
The body of the report (excluding the cover page) must be double-spaced in 12-point font size, include
one-inch margins, page numbers, and consist of 500 to 750 words in good sentence form. Any content
beyond the 750th word (not including the cover page) will not be read.
The following headings must be included in the report:
• Introduction
• Hard Skills Goals
• Soft Skills Goals
• Task Based Goals
The introduction should include a brief description of the student's job responsibilities (two to three
sentences should be sufficient).
LO by Term table - In addition to submitting a learning objectives report, students must submit an
updated “LO by Term” table (template available on UM Learn). The table is to be maintained each
work term and submitted along with each learning objectives report. The table should be completed
using short form (e.g. bullet points). Students should add lines to the table as needed, and be brief in
their descriptions of learning objectives. Students will be required to update their previous work
term’s LO by Term report by adding new (and different) learning objectives each work term.
The Learning Objective Table maybe submitted as a a separate document of attached at the end
to the Learning Objectives Report (preferred method).
The learning objectives report will be evaluated on both content and written communication skills. The
rubric that will be used to evaluate the report is available on UM Learn.
WORK TERM REPORT
The work term report should show what was learned from the work experience and how Asper courses
benefitted the work experience. The report is intended to be an honest, reflective, and structured review
of the work term experience.
4
The report must be completed in MS Word format and uploaded to UM Learn. The cover page of the
report must include:
• the title "Work Term One Report"
• student name
• student ID number
• email address using the myumanitoba.ca account
The body of the report (excluding the cover page) must be double-spaced in 12-point font size, include
one-inch margins, page numbers, and consist of 1,300 to 1,500 words in good sentence form. Any
content beyond the 1500th word (not including the cover page) will not be read.
The following headings must be included in the report:
• Introduction
• Overview and Analysis of the Job
• The Learning Objectives
• The Position and Fit
• Academic and Non-Academic Learning
• Conclusion
The content under each heading must be specific. For example, stating "the company was a great
place to work" is not adequate. Indicate what made it "great", for example, "the company provided a
respectful and collaborative environment, where all employees were motivated to help one another".
In the Introduction provide a brief description of the job and the company. Summarize the key points
contributing to whether the job was a good experience (or not) given your major, experience,
temperament and education. The introduction should be concise, no more than three to five sentences.
In The Job describe your job title and duties. Do not include lengthy descriptions of how these duties
were completed. For example, it is appropriate to state "one of my responsibilities was to complete the
monthly bank reconciliations". Do not continue by stating how this was completed, for example "I
obtained the bank statement information online, and I matched each cheque on the bank statement to the
company's cheque register ..."
Some points to reflect on in this section include:
• did the tasks you were asked to perform give you a broader understanding of your major?
• were your tasks the tasks you expected to perform? If not, was this a good or disappointing
experience? Why?
• were your duties and tasks well explained to you? Explain your conclusion. Any suggestions
for improvement?
• did you find the job easy to adjust to? Why or why not?
• did you get along well with your supervisor and co-workers? Why or why not? What, if needed,
could be done to improve these relations?
Under The Learning Objectives you are expected to reflect on whether or not you met all of your
learning objectives. Reflection must be made on each specific learning objective identified in your
learning objectives report. It is not sufficient to state "I met all my learning objectives".
5
Points to consider for each learning objective include:
• was the learning objective met? Why or why not?
• what actions did you undertake to attempt to reach your objective?
• how did the assigned job and training contribute (or not) to your success?
• how did your experience, education and temperament contribute (or not) to your success?
• was the learning objective appropriate and realistic? Why or why not?
• how can you better identify learning objectives for the next work term?
Marks are not awarded based on whether or not you met all your learning objectives. You will be
graded on the quality of your reflection and analysis of the goal setting process and why you were
successful (or not) in achieving your goals.
In The Position and Fit you are expected to discuss how well your work term experience meshed with
your major and your expectations for the work term. Points to consider include:
• did the work term experience contribute to your understanding of your planned career path?
Why or why not?
• what, if anything, should be done to ensure a better fit between the job and your major?
• what, if anything, could your employer have done to enrich your work experience?
• what, if anything, could you have done to enrich your work experience?
• did the work term experience affirm your planned career path or are you now considering a new
career path? Why?
In The Learning you are expected to summarize what you have learned during your work term
experience. Points to consider include:
• what did you learn that specifically relates to your major?
• what did you learn that does not specifically relate to your major but you consider to be useful?
• which courses were most helpful in your work term? Specify how each course was beneficial?
• did any of your courses assist you in better understanding your workplace tasks? .
• do you think what you learned on the job will enrich your classroom education? How? Be
specific.
• did you learn anything new about yourself? If you did, how will this affect your future actions in
the classroom and work place?
The Conclusion should include a brief description of the impact your participation in the co-op program
has had on you personally, academically and professionally.
The work term report will be evaluated on both content and written communication skills. The rubric
that will be used to evaluate the report is available on UM Learn.
UPLOADING THE REPORTS
To Upload Learning Objectives, LO by Term Table and ‘Co-op Work Term Contact Info & Site Visit
Availability’:
6
•
•
Submit your Learning Objectives Report and LO by Term Table combined as one MS
Word document (.doc/.docx) through UM Learn.(Preferred)
Additionally, you will need to submit your work contact information, supervisor contact
information and site visit meeting availability on the Career Portal. Once logged in > from the
home page, scroll down and locate on the right-hand side menu “Co-operative Education” and
select “York Work Term Placements” > locate your current work term, and click your cursor on
the three vertical dots > select “Edit” > complete your “Co-op Work Term Information” form.
To Upload Work Term Reports, Co-op Evaluations (and Resume for students enrolled in IDM 4982 - ie.
Work Term 3):
•
•
•
Submit your Work Term Report in MS Word format (.doc/.docx) through UM Learn.
Additionally, you will need to complete two evaluations through the Career Portal (https://asperumanitoba-csm.symplicity.com/students.) On the home page you can access your work terms by
selecting ‘Your Work Term Placements’ on the right hand side. When you see your current
work term, click your cursor on the three vertical dots find the ‘Self-Evaluation’ AND ‘Program
Evaluation’. These forms must be completed by the Work Term Report deadline.
*For work term 3 only, a copy of your updated resume in MS Word document format
(.doc/.docx) must be submitted with your work term report on UM Learn to receive a passing
grade in the course – no marks are allocated for the resume but it is a required component of
your work term three completion.
SUMMARY OF REQUIRED ASSIGNMENTS
May 24, 2016 Deadline:
1. Learning Objectives Report (UM Learn)
2. LO By Term Table (UM Learn)
3. Work Contact Info + Site Visit Availability
Form (Career Portal)
September 12, 2016 Deadline:
1. Work Term Report (UM Learn)
2. Self-Evaluation Form (Career Portal)
3. Program Evaluation Form (Career Portal)
4. *for work term 3 students only - updated
Resume (UM Learn)
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
•
Students must become familiar with the faculty’s policy on academic integrity noted below,
particularly with respect to plagiarism. In particular, students may not submit the same paper or
portions thereof for more than one assignment, without discussions with the instructors involved.
Academic Integrity
It is critical to the reputation of the I. H. Asper School of Business and of our degrees that everyone
7
associated with our faculty behaves with the highest academic integrity. As the faculty that helps create
business and government leaders, we have a special obligation to ensure that our ethical standards are
beyond reproach. Any dishonesty in our academic transactions violates this trust. The University of
Manitoba Undergraduate Calendar addresses the issue of academic dishonesty under the heading
“Plagiarism and Cheating.” Specifically, acts of academic dishonesty include, but are not limited to:
• using the exact words of a published or unpublished author without quotation marks and without
referencing the source of these words
• duplicating a table, graph or diagram, in whole or in part, without referencing the source
• paraphrasing the conceptual framework, research design, interpretation, or any other ideas of
another person, whether written or verbal (e.g., personal communications, ideas from a verbal
presentation) without referencing the source
• copying the answers of another student in any test, examination, or take-home assignment
• providing answers to another student in any test, examination, or take-home assignment
• taking any unauthorized materials into an examination or term test (crib notes)
• impersonating another student or allowing another person to impersonate oneself for the purpose
of submitting academic work or writing any test or examination
• stealing or mutilating library materials
• accessing tests prior to the time and date of the sitting
• changing name or answer(s) on a test after that test has been graded and returned
• submitting the same paper or portions thereof for more than one assignment, without discussions
with the instructors involved.
Group Projects and Group Work
Many courses in the I. H. Asper School of Business require group projects. Students should be aware that
group projects are subject to the same rules regarding academic dishonesty. Because of the unique nature
of group projects, all group members should exercise special care to insure that the group project does not
violate the policy on Academic Integrity. Should a violation occur, group members are jointly accountable
unless the violation can be attributed to a specific individual(s).
Some courses, while not requiring group projects, encourage students to work together in groups (or at
least do not prohibit it) before submitting individual assignments. Students are encouraged to discuss this
issue as it relates to academic integrity with their instructor to avoid violating this policy.
In the I. H. Asper School of Business, all suspected cases of academic dishonesty are passed to the Dean’s
office in order to ensure consistency of treatment.
The typical penalty for a first-time offence includes an F in the course with a notation on the transcript
and being barred from taking any courses in the I. H. Asper School of Business for a period of six to
eight months.
PROFESSIONAL WRITING TIPS
It is expected that students prepare both reports in a professional tone using correct grammar, spelling,
punctuation and word usage. Good resources available to students include:
8
•
•
•
•
content from the Business Communications course (GMGT 2010) or Introduction to
Communications course (GMGT 2000).
the Writing section of the Virtual Learning Commons Web site at:
http://umanitoba.ca/student/academiclearning/handouts/handouts.html#AcWrt
grammar-checking and spell-checking functions of MS Word, keeping in mind that these
functions do not catch all errors.
the CA School of Business Communication and Critical Thinking Guide April 2012 available at:
http://www.casb.com/Portals/0/documents/currentstudents/guides/CommunicationCriticalThinkingGuide.pdf
Excerpts from the guide follow:
Word Usage1
•
Advice/Advise
o “Advice”: noun, a recommendation (Example: “The client sought her advice.”)
o “Advise”: verb, to give advice (Example: “She advised the client on tax rates.”)
•
Affect/Effect
o “Affect”: verb, to influence (Example: “The news affected my innermost senses.”)
o “Effect”: as a noun, a result (Example: “That was the desired effect.”)
o “Effect”: as a verb, to cause or produce (Example: “He hoped to effect change.”)
•
Among/Between
o “Between” introduces two terms and “among” introduces more than two terms
(Example: “She has to choose among three main courses and between two desserts.”)
•
Assure/Ensure/Insure
o “Assure”: to give confidence; to inform positively (Example: “I assure you we can finish
the work tonight.”)
o “Ensure”: to make sure of (Example: “Please ensure you turn off the lights.”)
o “Insure”: to secure against a loss (Example: “I insure my bike against theft.”)
•
Because/As/Since
o To express an unequivocal reason or cause, use “because” instead of “as” or “since”.
(Proper example: “She was very excited because her vacation started in two weeks.” Poor
usage examples: “She was very excited as her vacation started in two weeks”; “she was
very excited since her vacation started in two weeks.”)
•
CPAs/CPA’s
1
Courtesy of CA School of Business. CA School of Business Communication and Critical Thinking Guide April 2012,
pages 10 - 12. Copyright 2012 – CA School of Business. All rights reserved. Materials herein may be reproduced within the
context of professional practice or classroom education, provided that reproduced materials are not in any way directly
offered for sale or profit.
9
o “CPAs”: plural, more than one CPA (Example: “CPAs provide tax advice.”)
o “CPA’s”: possessive form of CPA (Example: “The CPA’s computer was broken.”)
•
e.g./i.e.
o “e.g.”: for example (Example:”Identify significant balance sheet accounts, e.g. accounts
receivable, inventory, and accounts payable.”)
o “i.e.”: that is; in other words (Example: “The equity accounts, i.e. share capital,
contributed surplus, and retained earnings, are on the balance sheet.”)
•
If/Whether
o “If”: indicates a condition, choice, or concession (Examples: “If the client does
this, the result will be ... If not, the result will be ...”)
o “Whether”: indicates a choice between two or more circumstances (Example: The client
must decide whether to invest in the company.”)
•
Its/It’s
o “Its”: possessive form of it (Example: “The firm improved its competitive position.”)
o “It’s”: contraction of “it is” or “it has”; used in casual communications (Example: “It’s
expected to rain.”) In professional writing, do not use this contraction.
•
Fewer/Less
o Use “fewer” with nouns that can be counted. (Example: “There are fewer errors than
expected.”)
o Use “less” with nouns that cannot be counted (Example: “He felt less fear.”)
•
Loose/Lose
o Loose: adjective – slack, opposite of tight (Example: “The company has loose internal
controls.”)
o Lose: verb – miss, opposite of win (Example: “I always lose my keys.”)
•
More than/Over
o More than: use “more than” when you can quantify the amount (Example: “That cat
weighs more than 15 pounds.”)
o Over: “over” is a spatial relationship (Example: “My hand is over the table.”)
•
Principal/Principle
o Principal: adjective – major, primary, leading; or noun – head of a school, leader, highlevel individual, owner (Adjective example: “Tania’s principal objective is to achieve
business growth”; noun example: “Tania is the principal of Mogen Flowers.”)
o Principle: noun, fundamental law, rule, or theory (Example: “Accounting methods often
rely on the cost principle.”)
•
That/Which
o Use “that” with restrictive clauses, needed for the sentence to make sense. (Example:
“The cat went through the door that was red.”)
10
o Use “which” with non-restrictive clauses, not required for the sentence to make sense.
(Example: “The door, which was red, was open.”)
•
Who/Whom/That
o “Who”: object and person (Example: “The partner who is in charge of audit met with the
client.”)
o “Whom”: indirect object and person (Example: “The client to whom the letter was
addressed met with the partner.”)
o “That”: things, organizations, and groups (Example: “The letter that was sent to the client
identified the major recommendations.”)
Hyphenation2
•
•
•
Use hyphens for most compound modifiers (e.g. tax-free distribution and lump-sum
payment).
Close up compound words and prefixed words wherever possible, except where a double vowel
is created (e.g. pro-active, pre-existing).
Hyphenate words with “related” and “specific” when used as modifiers (e.g. company-related
data, client-specific requirements).
Pronouns3
o Use “his or her,” “himself or herself,” and “he and she” when referring to one person
whose gender could be male or female, do not use “their,” “themselves,” or “them.”
o Use “it or its” and not “they, them, or their” when referring to a company or other
organization.
Examples of Unprofessional vs. Professional Tone4
Unprofessional:
Professional:
Sales increased by a whopping 80%.
Sales increased by 80%.
2
Courtesy of CA School of Business. CA School of Business Communication and Critical Thinking Guide April 2012, page
12. Copyright 2012 – CA School of Business. All rights reserved. Materials herein may be reproduced within the context of
professional practice or classroom education, provided that reproduced materials are not in any way directly offered for sale
or profit.
3
Courtesy of CA School of Business. CA School of Business Communication and Critical Thinking Guide April 2012,
page 12. Copyright 2012 – CA School of Business. All rights reserved. Materials herein may be reproduced within the
context of professional practice or classroom education, provided that reproduced materials are not in any way directly
offered for sale or profit.
4
Courtesy of CA School of Business. CA School of Business Communication and Critical Thinking Guide April 2012,
pages 19 to 20. Copyright 2012 – CA School of Business. All rights reserved. Materials herein may be reproduced within
the context of professional practice or classroom education, provided that reproduced materials are not in any way directly
offered for sale or profit.
11
You can’t take a deduction for...
You cannot take a deduction for...
Be sure to keep in mind that...
Note that... (Or, for conciseness, delete the
phrase)
The importance of this issue cannot be
overrated.
You need to be able to look at both
sides of the coin.
This issue is important because...
This approach has advantages and
disadvantages.
I’ve gone over your question...
I have analyzed...
I do believe that taking the deduction
now would be more beneficial...
Taking the deduction now would be
more beneficial because...
The accountant completely forgot to...
The accountant did not...
MORE GRAMMAR AND SPELLING TIPS
1. Structure your sentences properly.
Avoid run-on sentences (two complete sentences joined together).
Avoid sentence fragments (a group of words that have no subject or verb and express an incomplete
thought).
Make sure you use both commas and conjunctions properly when joining complete sentences or ideas
together.
Poor Structure: I managed a number of projects. Most notably a communication plan and a
marketing strategy.
Good Structure: I managed a number of projects, most notably a communication plan and a
marketing strategy.
2. Use clear and precise vocabulary.
Choose your words carefully. Avoid vague or ambiguous language - be direct and clear. Avoid
informal language such as slang, unnecessary abbreviations and clichés. Being too colloquial or too
overblown (e.g. awesome, outstanding, etc.) is also not acceptable for formal business communication.
Use of phrases such as "You'll get a kick out of this!" is also not acceptable.
Poor vocabulary: I went to a workshop on fundraising.
Good vocabulary: I participated in a workshop on fundraising.
12
3. Ensure there is agreement between the subject and the verb.
Check your sentences carefully to make sure that plural subjects agree with plural verbs and singular
subjects agree with singular verbs.
Lack of agreement: The administrator in charge of all other staff members are eager to share in the
workload.
Good agreement: The administrator in charge of all other staff members is eager to share in the
workload.
4. Maintain parallelism.
Use the same format for words in a series, sequence or list. This means using the same word type
(adjective, verb, noun, etc.) and the same verb tense if possible.
Poor parallelism: My duties included planning meetings, scheduling events, and I arranged several
fundraisers.
Good parallelism: My duties included planning meetings, scheduling events and arranging several
fundraisers.
5. Punctuate correctly.
Make sure to check for missing or incorrect punctuation, such as absent apostrophes or misplaced
semicolons. Consult a grammar handbook if necessary.
Poor punctuation: On my supervisor's recommendation; I tried a new strategy.
Good punctuation: On my supervisor's recommendations, I tried a new strategy.
6. Eliminate homophone errors.
Pay attention to words that sound the same but have different spellings and meanings, especially
common errors, such as "it's/its", "they're/their/there" and "you're/your". Homophone mistakes will not
be caught by the spelling or grammar checking function in a word processor.
Homophone error: I updated the database and increased it's efficiency.
No homophone error: I updated the database and increased its efficiency.
7. Do not use contractions.
13
Never contract two words.
Contraction: It's ready to be submitted to the president.
No contraction: It is ready to be submitted to the president.
14