ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling lady on the right side. Pauline Cox, Archivist, Memorial University of Newfoundland Folklore and Language Archive (MUNFLA), beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "Apply! Apply! Apply! On-campus employment positions offer invaluable experiential learning opportunities; you never know where that experience, combined with your education, might take you!"

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling man on the right side. Tom Cooper, Professor, Faculty of Business Administration, Memorial University of Newfoundland, beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "I would suggest students seek positions that are not only easy, but ones that get them out of their comfort zones. Universities are safe places, they allow you to fail and to learn from that failure. Programs like SWASP and MUCEP also allow you to figure out what you like and dislike from working. Taking advantage of opportunities that may not appear anywhere else unless through a MUCEP is great!"

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling man on the right side. Ryan Norman, Registered Social Worker, Waterford Hospital, Eastern Health, beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "It helped to make me feel a part of the Memorial University community. It is one thing to sit in a classroom and learn from your professors. It is another thing entirely to have an opportunity to be involved in research, knowledge generation and other processes in working directly with the faculty and staff at the university. I will be forever grateful for these opportunities."

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling man on the right side. Paul Brett, Associate Vice-President, Research and Partnerships, Marine Institute, Memorial University of Newfoundland, beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "It was a great experience, not only did it provide me valuable income, I got to know different research areas and it sparked an interest that would shape my career over the next 30 years."

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling man on the right side. Paddy Phillips, National Enablement Coach, Automotive Finance, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "During my placement, I spent the majority of my time assisting with event planning for some significant events in the faculty, including the annual partners' dinner. I worked with faculty, staff and external stakeholders, which proved to be very helpful connections in my career journey and as part of my professional network. I have now been employed with RBC for the last 15 years in several different roles and I think that experience and those connections helped me differentiate myself from my peers and stand out in the job competitions once I graduated."

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling man on the right side. Michael Barbour, Director of Faculty Development, College of Education & Health Sciences; Professor of Instructional Design at Touro University California, beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "These placements allowed me to get to know individual faculty members outside of the classroom in a way that I would never have been able to from just being a student of theirs. My work with Marc and Mike led to lifelong friendships....The extra money was always a nice thing too, as was the chance to engage in being a part of academia before I even knew that I wanted to be a faculty member. So I guess it gave me a chance to explore areas that I would never have considered without the opportunities that these MUCEP placements provided."

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling lady on the right side. Melissa Pike, Founder and Owner, Sunflower Design Co.; (former) Marketing Advisor, School of Graduate Studies, beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "My experience in this MUCEP position impacted my career path in a MAJOR way! I gained skills in an area (marketing) that I’d been curious about, but was lacking experience in...Canva was a newer company when I started using their design software, but today you can find Canva experience as a qualification in many job descriptions. Without working with the School of Pharmacy in my MUCEP position, I would not have gotten the chance to really learn this in a hands-on way. Now, I am working in Canva every day as I create branding and marketing materials for clients of my small business!"

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling lady on the right side. Melanie Hurley, PhD Candidate, Department of English, Memorial University of Newfoundland, beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "[The placements] simply added to the student experience. I met people whom I would not otherwise have met, and it helped me to earn money that I would not have otherwise had, which is very helpful for a student."

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling lady on the right side. Megan MacKinnon, Research Assistant, Memorial University of Newfoundland, beneath photo. Yellow text body says, "The practical experience I earned from being able to work in a laboratory as an undergraduate student opened many doors for me. Following my position for the MAAS lab during one of my MUCEPs, I was selected for the Federal Student Work Program during the summer of 2019...The doors opened by my MUCEP position allowed me to continue on to an honour’s degree and now a master’s in the field of archaeology. I was able to build skills as an undergraduate that served as a foundation for the technical work in the MAAS lab, where I am currently fulfilling the requirements of a master's."

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling lady on the right side. Megan Foote, Manager of Recruitment Services (Atlantic), ApplyBoard. Yellow text body reads, "Without these MUCEP placements, I wouldn’t have been exposed to a career in post-secondary education. Also, being in a program without co-op, I wouldn't have had the career experience and references needed to make me competitive for my first jobs out of university."

ALT A purple and pink gradient background with a photo of a smiling lady on the right side. Mary Feltham, President, Grenfell Campus Student Union; Part-time employment at Marblewood Village Resort, beneath photo. Yellow text body reads, "I had a lot of freedom to pursue creative means in promoting the services through different marketing techniques, which was fantastic to experience. My supervisors were also very helpful in guiding me with work plans through emails and/or meetings, as needed. My SWASP position was not in-person due to it being over the pandemic lockdown. However, having an on-campus employment with supervisors who work in academia made it easy to manage my time since they had had a greater understanding/appreciation of my class schedule."