It can be found in the group of friends who decide to spend their Friday evening serving meals to the homeless at an emergency shelter. And it can be found anytime the RWU community comes together to work for a worthwhile cause, to give something back to the larger community. The Cooperative Education program enables full-time students in good academic standing to earn academic credit through approved employment in their field of study. While integral to some degree programs, cooperative education is not required by all programs. The cooperative education experience is approved in advanced by cooperative education staff and the student's academic advisor.
Students first complete an orientation to experiential learning.
Cooperative education assignments must be of sufficient duration, usually one semester, and must be considered a meaningful part of the academic program in which the student is enrolled. Normally students are engaged full-time. Employers are expected to compensate students at a rate comparable to that paid to employees who do similar work. However, a student may work without pay for a social or educational organization provided that the position is not one for which other person are compensated by the agency or organization. Two semester of study at Roger Williams University with satisfactory academic performance is prerequisite to cooperative education placement.