Make an impact alongside real-world innovators. Get paid to hone your entrepreneurial thinking skills and work on projects with new companies and technologies that are shaping the future.
Experience Ventures creates paid entrepreneurial thinking placements for college and university students with innovative companies in Canada. Our goal is to inspire your creativity, resiliency and vision – so you can seize your future with the right skill set
How does Experience Ventures work?
1
Students apply for an entrepreneurial thinking placement facilitated by their school, through Experience Ventures, from Summer 2021 through to Winter 2022.
2
New companies provide in-kind support, such as time, space or expertise, and benefit from having students work on projects at no cost, while students are paid for their time through Experience Ventures at their school.
3
Both students and companies go through an onboarding process and participate in one of five types of entrepreneurial thinking placements. After they have completed the opportunity, both students and companies evaluate their experiences.
Why should you participate?
Become a changemaker
Our goal is to help you become future ready by developing the skills and mindset to thrive in the innovation economy. Experience Ventures opportunities will enable you to:
Apply in-class learning to the challenges and opportunities facing ventures.
Explore Canada’s evolving innovation economy.
Network and meet industry leaders and employers.
Discover the latest technologies being incubated in Canada.
Enhance your resume with a unique experience and develop your work-ready skills.
Receive compensation for your placement.
Who is eligible to participate?
Any student from any discipline and faculty registered in a Canadian college and university who is:
A Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or person on whom refugee protection has been conferred under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
Legally entitled to work in Canada in accordance with relevant provincial or territorial legislation and regulations.
Enrolled in any full- or part-time program of post-secondary study.
Please check the list of participating schools to see if your school is a partner. If your school is not a partner, you may still be eligible to participate.
Please contact us for more information.
Frequently Asked Questions
To apply to Experience Ventures, fill in our form to request more information from a partner school.
Each post-secondary partner has a different set of acceptance criteria for Experience Ventures. Contact Experience Ventures for more detailed information.
You will get paid for your Experience Ventures placement. Your school will have more information on how that money will be allocated.
Please contact Experience Ventures for more detailed information.
An Experience Ventures opportunity is a short-term entrepreneurial thinking opportunity that can take many formats and should be related to what you’re studying.
A placement is not officially tied to your curriculum and does not qualify as such, except in the following circumstance:
You can use the Experience Ventures opportunity towards your field of study, as long as it meets the curriculum requirements of a placement or internship for an academic course.
Experience Ventures offers short term paid entrepreneurial thinking placements. The length of each placement and payment terms will vary from school to school, so please contact Experience Ventures for more detailed information.
A co-op term is officially a “Work Integrated Learning” experience, for which you get academic credit.
An Experience Ventures opportunity is short-term, and can take many formats and should be related to what you are studying. A placement is not officially tied to your curriculum and does not qualify as such, except in the following circumstance:
You can use an Experience Ventures opportunity towards your field of study, as long as it meets the curriculum requirements of a placement or internship for an academic course.
Yes, absolutely! As long as you meet the basic eligibility requirements, you can apply to Experience Ventures. Each school may have other criteria for acceptance, so please contact us for more detailed information on acceptance criteria at your school.
Potentially! By participating in Experience Ventures, you’re taking a big step towards building your professional network and learning how to build relationships with different types of individuals in the innovation community. Networking and relationship-building are key success factors in looking for a full-time job after graduation.
No, the program is currently limited to one paid placement per student.