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“WIL online curriculum motivates international students back on track” - Heather Williams and Sharla Reid, Simon Fraser University

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“Educating Employer Partners on How to Attract Diverse Early Talent for WIL” - Maurice Fernandes, Ryerson University

WIL Online Curriculum Motivates International Students Back on Track - Shifting tides in international education call for new innovations and collaborative relationships across teaching and learning to better meet the needs of diverse learners. Whether a student persists or drops out of post secondary education is often related to their degree of academic and social integration (Tinto, 2012; Kirby, 2015; Aljohani, 2016). Additionally, within Canadian post-secondary institutions, English as Additional Language (EAL) learners are sometimes viewed through a deficit model (Kerschbaum, 2014). Simon Fraser University's Job Search Success (JSS) program has been piloted with international students on academic probation at Fraser International College. JSS uses a strength-based framework, preparing students for Canadian work integrated learning opportunities. This program has a positive impact on academic and social integration, as evidenced by a consistent boost in GPA and higher retention rates. The presentation will share the evidence-based approach to the development, design, and delivery of the curriculum, created specifically for EAL learners. The presenters will also show samples of the visually-based materials and how these elements play a positive role in impacting international students in the Canadian context. 

Educating Employer Partners on How to Attract Diverse Early Talent for WIL  - With an increasing shortage of talent and a generation of new professionals approaching the workforce with different values, skills, and expectations, businesses need to stay attuned to upcoming generations’ needs and adapt their talent acquisition strategies accordingly. Industry partners need to rethink their campus engagement strategy, leverage relationships with university career centres to create productive connections with professionals in training, and establish their organizations as employers of choice for equity deserving groups.

Learning Objectives

• Effective relationship-building strategies for higher ROI on campus
• Understand how to build intelligence on needs of future talent to help inform talent management and acquisition strategies and the evolution of workplace culture
• Innovative student engagement activities that contribute the employer brand loyalty and the training and development of talent pipeline

Sharla Reid and Akanksha Thakur - Sharla Reid is the College Director and Principal of Fraser International College at Simon Fraser University. Since joining FIC Sharla has built a robust student leadership community that has both award-winning student support programming and community leaders. She has worked with the partner institution to create targeted faculty specific support programming for students to ensure students succeed in North America. Akanksha Thakur works as the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Project Coordinator in Work Integrated Learning at Simon Fraser University (SFU) where she curates and collaborates on building EDI resources designed to help make experiential learning opportunities more inclusive to diverse students. Currently, Akanksha also works with the Canadian Race Relations Foundation to offer workshops on anti-racism and intercultural communication to practitioners across Canada.

Maurice Fernandes - Maurice is an award-winning HR professional with over 20 years of experience specializing in campus recruitment, employment brand, and career education. Maurice’s HR/Recruitment experience has taken him as far west as Silicon Valley and as far east as Prince Edward Island. Maurice has spoken about HR/recruitment best practices and labour trends at a variety of conferences and campuses and contributed to articles for the Globe and Mail, and the Canadian HR Reporter. Maurice is currently a Career Education Specialist at the Ryerson Career & Co-op Centre supporting the super talented undergraduate students in the Faculty of Science.