BEST Co-op
Students are offered an opportunity to learn the ins and outs of building and running a business in their field. During your work term, you and your mentor work together to plan and design your own business idea and establish yourself and your business moving forward.
- Available after your second year.
- Co-op consists of 2 work periods separated by at least one academic term.
- Upon completion of the program, you receive a co-op designation on your transcript. To receive this designation, the total duration across your 2 work periods must be at least 12 months and no more than 20 months
Note: Students may complete either the BEST Entrepreneurial Co-op or the BEST Entrepreneurial Internship once during their undergraduate studies. The internship mirrors the co-op format but is independent of the Lassonde Co-op program and is only available to students no longer eligible for Lassonde co-op. Participants receive $4,000 in compensation for the four-month, full-time work term, awarded as a BEST Award deposited into their tuition account at the end of the term.
Streams
Stream 1
Students working on their own business idea at BEST with BEST Faculty supervision
Stream 2
Students working with a BEST startup with BEST Faculty supervision
What our students say about BEST Co-op
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BEST CO-OP | Koroush Toghrol, Mechanical Engineering, 2022
“After leaving my job in manufacturing in October 2020, I doubled down on my farming venture, KROP. Through the entrepreneurial co-op program at the BEST Lab, I began a journey that, as of February 2022, secured its first client and delivery. Between those two dates has been filled with ups, downs, success, failures, and many hardships. However, lessons learned from the focused entrepreneurial mindset of the BEST Lab have allowed me to push through and, more importantly, motivate my growing team of seven, to do so as well. KROP is an indoor vertical farm focused on micro-green and salad greens production. While our current clientele and business strategy are focused on boutique restaurants, greens-focused businesses, and premium subscription boxes, our end goal is straightforward: We are working towards a future where produce is grown locally, sustainably, and affordably; for everyone, everywhere. Our proprietary growing platform is piloted with micro-greens and salad greens to capitalize on their short seed to yield times. Still, it is being developed to handle many common and not-so-common farm crops. The goal is to be the primary producer of a nutritious, sustainable, and long-term diet.”
-Koroush Toghrol, Mechanical Engineering, 2022
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BEST CO-OP | Nick Di Scipio, Mechanical Engineering, 2021
"Having already experienced an unprecedented academic year due to COVID, it seemed only fitting that my co-op term was just as unique. The BEST Co-op program provided me with the flexibility to take my start-up in my own direction while connecting me with a community of like-minded and innovative individuals within Lassonde. Working with BEST also allowed me to see the value of my startup and gave me the essential tools to take my startup to the next level. My BEST co-op term became the starting point for a new chapter of MPN 3D in which we could work within the Lassonde community to learn, grow, and become more successful because of it. My co-op experience with BEST has showed me the importance of being a well-rounded individual by allowing me to simultaneously gain experience both in the business and engineering world."
-Nick Di Scipio, Mechanical Engineering, 2021
Umar Faruk Sani
Reefers Technologies
(Graduated, Mechanical Engineering)
“What surprised me most was how interdisciplinary engineering work truly is. I expected to stay within the mechanical realm, but I found myself regularly collaborating with electrical and business-focused team members. This broadened my perspective and helped me understand how interconnected technical, strategic, and user-focused decisions are. I was also surprised at how much responsibility I was trusted with early on, which pushed me to rise to the challenge.”
Muhammad Ali Kermali
Nobl Kids
(Graduated, Computer Science)
“My biggest takeaway is that software development involves more than just coding. It requires understanding users and business goals, adapting to change, collaborating effectively, and taking initiative to deliver impactful products. Success in this field requires a blend of technical skills, business knowledge, and a passion for innovation. This co-op experience has solidified my love for software development, and I will continue pursuing a career in the field.”
Walid Duri
PharmShift
(Graduated, Computer Engineering)
“The internship taught me how quickly I can turn unfamiliar theory into production code when the stakes are real. I realised my strengths in rapid learning and problem decomposition, but also saw that I must give more realistic time estimates and get feedback earlier. Tackling a brand-new AI integration project has pushed me to be self-directed and inventive.”
Nick Di Scipio
Pantheon Prototyping
(Graduated, Mechanical Engineering)
“The BEST Co-op program provided me with the flexibility to take my start-up in my own direction while connecting me with a community of like-minded and innovative individuals within Lassonde. Working with BEST also allowed me to see the value of my startup and gave me the essential tools to take my startup to the next level.My co-op experience with BEST has showed me the importance of being a well-rounded individual by allowing me to simultaneously gain experience both in the business and engineering world.”
Koroush Toghrol
KROP
(Graduated, Mechanical Engineering)
“After leaving my job in manufacturing in October 2020, I doubled down on my farming venture, KROP. Through the entrepreneurial co-op program at the BEST Lab, I began a journey that, as of February 2022, secured its first client and delivery. Between those two dates has been filled with ups, downs, success, failures, and many hardships. However, lessons learned from the focused entrepreneurial mindset of the BEST Lab have allowed me to push through and, more importantly, motivate my growing team of seven, to do so as well.”
Shaylin Ziaei
Lab2Client
(3rd year, Software Engineering)
“This co-op gave me the chance to get out of my comfort zone and do the tasks that I didn’t think I could do. So, It was a great opportunity to cultivate my academic knowledge and confidence at the same time.”
Khawaja Faiza Qaisar
Pantheon Prototyping
(4th year, Computer Engineering)
“One of the biggest takeaways is something I used to hear from professors that one may not always end up working doing one thing. In this position, I didn’t just have a role to develop but also to be a project manager and to lead. This is the biggest takeaway for me that be ready to swap roles and be efficient in each. ”
Muhammad Hamza Sohail
Muhammad Hamza Hamza Sohail
(3rd year, Software Engineering)
“Undoubtedly, my most significant takeaway from this co-op experience as a back-end engineer was the profound understanding of the interconnectedness between technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and effective collaboration within a team. This experience not only deepened my technical expertise but also illuminated essential aspects of personal and professional growth.”
Minupa Rodrigo
KROP
(4th year, Mechanical Engineering)
“I got the opportunity to handle the project however I wanted. Which meant I got the freedom to approach the problem however I wished. This meant that I was able to apply my skills and knowledge to the fullest.”
Michael David
Chatbase
(3rd year, Computer Science)
“My biggest takeaway from this co-op experience is mainly that taking risks/diving into ambiguity is quite important for change/progress and I should consider thinking more decisively towards taking on these kinds of opportunities. My main focus was not currently in web development before starting, but returning to it and trying to go into tasks with a positive mindset helped me a lot and kept me productive for most of my working days. Even with problems arising sometimes, after getting through them, the potential to grow from struggling some amount is huge. This could especially help me to land my next co-op and perform well in future work environments.”
Mouiz Ahmed
Chatbase
(3rd, Software Engineering)
“One of the biggest takeaways from this experience was that I’m an extremely quick learner and can adopt new languages, technologies, codebases, and APIs efficiently and quickly. Throughout the co-op, I’ve had to constantly learn new things through research and documentation while being able to implement them effectively. I’ve found myself to exceptionally thrive while doing this, while also finding it enjoyable to constantly expand my knowledge. This will be very useful and can be applied to almost every part of my life including school, future jobs, and adopting new skills throughout my life.”
Rares Tibu
Reefers Technologies
(4th year, Mechanical Engineering)
“The biggest takeaway from this experience was learning about working in a startup. I learned how a wide variety of tasks ranging from technical to soft skills are distributed among a small team. This allows one to engage in a wide variety of tasks.”
Che Lorde
HandiFuel
(6th year, Mechanical Engineering)
“What surprised me was how much fun I had doing my job. I was under the impression that the work would be highly demanding and the work atmosphere would be tense, but it was the opposite. I had a wonderful time working with my teammates and doing my role.”