Frequently Asked Questions

A wage subsidy provides financial reimbursement to employers who hire eligible job seekers.

In order to qualify for SWPP funding, employers must hire students to fill “net new placements.” Net new placements are any placements over and above those filled in the previous year. For example, if your business hired two students last year (your baseline year), and are hiring five students this year, this amounts to three net new placements. So long as students meet eligibility criteria, these three net new placements will be eligible for SWPP funding.

Students from under-represented groups include:

• Women in STEM: Refers to a woman registered and in a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) program at a Canadian post-secondary institution.
• Indigenous people: Refers to people who reported identifying with at least one Aboriginal group, namely:
  • First Nations, Métis or Inuit, and/or those who reported being a Treaty Indian
  • Registered Indian as defined by the Indian Act of Canada, and/or those who reported they were members of an Indian band or First Nation
• Persons with disabilities: Refers to an individual who has a difficulty or impairment due to a long-term condition or health problem and/or experiences a limitation in their daily activities.
• Newcomer: Refers to individuals who immigrated to Canada within the last five years.

Visible minorities: Refers to persons, other than Indigenous peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour.

As defined by Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated Learning Canada (CEWIL), work-integrated learning (WIL) is a model and process of curricular experiential education which formally and intentionally integrates a student’s academic studies within a workplace or practice setting. WIL opportunities that are eligible for SWPP wage subsidies include, but are not limited to:

• mentorship programs
• co-op placements
• practicums
• applied research projects; and
• internships

WIL experiences include an engaged partnership of at least: an academic institution, a host organization, and a student. WIL can occur at the course or program level and includes the development of learning outcomes related to employability, personal agency, and life-long learning.
Learn more about WIL

First Year Students are defined as students registered in the first year of their program at a recognized post-secondary institution, regardless of that student's age.