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Co-operative education and work-integrated learning (WIL) are powerful means to prepare post-secondary students for the VUCA world: a world that is volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. Co-op and WIL programs expose students to the workplace which, among other things, allows students to learn about the contexts and challenges facing their employers. This contributes to the development of an “adaptive resilience” that is so crucial for coping with VUCA and the future of work and learning. Still, existing co-op and WIL programs can do more. We developed a Future-Ready Talent Framework that provides educators with explicit learning outcomes, gives students clear expectations, and equips organizations with a common language with which to interact with post-secondary institutions, educators, and students. Our Framework is comprised of four different skill sets: Discipline and Context Specific Skills, Develop Self, Build Relationships, and Create Solutions. Each of the four skill sets includes three distinct skills. Although it is a work in progress, our Framework can serve as the basis for improved curriculum, communication, and evaluation, and can serve as a tool for students to develop the confidence and know-how to face the future of work and learning.

There are many predicted changes for the future of work. These changes will have significant implications for the type of work that people will do and the careers they will have. The question for many higher education institutions is what can be done to support students in preparing for what is predicted to be a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) future. In this chapter, work-integrated learning (WIL) will be explored as a model of education particularly useful in preparing students for a VUCA world. The chapter will examine one WIL program in particular, the University of Waterloo's co-op program, and consider how its design aligns and supports students in preparing for their future work.

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