Población de estudio

Given the low priority ascribed to earning money as a motivation for WIL participation among both college and university WIL students, and the identification of not being paid as the top challenge experienced by all WIL students, additional analysis was conducted to assist in understanding the financial implications of participating in WIL programs. Since co-op programs require employers to provide remuneration for co-op students, and co-op participation has been identified in the literature as contributing to lower incidence of student debt and smaller student debt loads (Haddara and Skanes, 2007), this analysis explored the anticipated debt of graduating students by type of WIL, using respondents who had participated in a single type of WIL only. While these results offer some insights into the association between PSE debt and participation in WIL, they do not provide evidence of a causal relationship, since many other factors can impact the amount of debt incurred by postsecondary students. These factors include the tuition fees and program-related costs required for particular fields of study, the amount of income earned by PSE students through part-time or other employment, and students’ personal financial circumstances. Nevertheless, the results presented in this section add depth to the other findings reported in this study related to the financial benefits and challenges of WIL participation.

Financial Implications of College WIL

As indicated in the respondent profile, approximately 63 per cent of all college students expected to repay debt upon graduation. Comparison by participation in WIL showed that this proportion was the same for both WIL and non-WIL college students and did not vary by type of WIL, indicating that college WIL students were as likely to expect to incur debt as non-WIL students regardless of WIL program.

When the average amount of debt was examined, significant differences were found between WIL and non-WIL students. College interns, co-op students and practicum students expected to carry significantly higher debt loads than non-WIL students. Although the average amount of debt varied for the other types of WIL, the differences were not statistically significant.

Figure 17

Further analysis considered the proportion of respondents who expected to owe above and below the average college student debt ($15,000) and produced similar results. College students who participated in internships, practicums, field placements and co-op were all significantly more likely than non-WIL students to carry debts greater than $15,000. This is consistent with the logistic regression finding reported earlier that college WIL students were more likely to have higher debt loads than non-WIL college students.

Figure 18

Expected College Debt by WIL and Type of WIL

Financial Implications of University WIL

When the same analysis was conducted with unique university WIL respondents only, significant differences were found in both the proportion of students anticipating debt and in the amount of debt they expected to repay.

As indicated in the respondent profile, 57 per cent of all university students anticipated repaying debt upon graduation. Comparison by type of WIL showed that practicum students were much more likely to anticipate debt than co-op, applied research and non- WIL students. The differences for other types of WIL were not statistically significant.

Figure 19

Proportion of University Students Owing Debt by WIL and Type of WIL

13,143 13,340 15,067 15,674 15,945 16,847 17,925 0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 No WIL Applied research project Service learning Field placement Practicum Co-op Internship

Mean expected debt ($)

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Service learning No WIL Applied research project Co-op Field placement Practicum Internship Percent of respondents No debt

Below average debt Above average debt

When the mean amounts of university debt were examined, both practicum and service learning students reported significantly higher debt loads than all other students. While university co-op students reported the lowest mean debt, this finding was not statistically different from the debt loads expected by students in field placements, internships and applied research projects, as well as those who did not participate in WIL.

Figure 20

Mean Expected University Debt by WIL and Type of WIL

Further exploration revealed that co-op students are significantly less likely than their non-WIL peers to expect to graduate with debts in excess of $25,000, which is the average debt reported by all university students. Conversely, university students who participated in practicums were significantly more likely than non-WIL students to carry debts greater than $25,000, and were also less likely to report no debt.

Figure 21

Expectations of University Debt by WIL and Type of WIL

68.6 _63.4 62.1 ₆₀ 55.6 _50.7 47.7 0 20 40 60 80 Practicum Service learning Field placement

Internship No WIL Co-op Applied research project Percent of respondents 18,999 20,904 23,209 23,225 23,372 33,564 35,263 0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000 35,000 40,000 Co-op Applied research project No WIL Internship Field placement Practicum Service learning

WIL Financial Implications Summary

The financial advantages of WIL participation accrue more to university students than college students. Not only were college WIL students as likely to anticipate debt as non- WIL students, but those participating in internships, practicums, field placements and co- op reported higher than average debt loads compared to non-WIL students.

At the university level, students who participated in practicums were more likely to anticipate debt than non-WIL students, reported higher mean debts, and were more likely to carry higher than average debt loads. Participation in university co-op programs, however, appeared to offer financial benefits for co-op students. Although equally likely to anticipate having to repay debt upon graduation, university co-op students reported lower mean debt amounts than non-WIL students ($19,000 compared to $23,000). They were also significantly less likely to report carrying higher than average debt loads.

As noted in the literature, participation in WIL may reduce students’ ability to earn other employment income and may impose additional financial hardships related to relocation costs and living expenses. This is the case even when compensation is offered by the WIL employer, such as for co-op programs. The present analysis suggests that the financial burden of WIL may be greatest for practicum students at both the college and university levels.

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Co-op Applied research project No WIL Internship Field placement Service learning Practicum Percent of respondents No debt

Below average debt Above average debt