Winter student hiring starts now
November 21, 2025 – Defence Stories
Estimated read time – 2:00
As the winter season is fast approaching, now is the perfect time to start planning your student hiring needs.
Start the process early to ensure you have the support you need. You can hire students by accessing the:
- Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP)
- Post-Secondary Co-operative Program (Co-op)
- Research Affiliate Program (RAP)
Students are available to work part-time during the school year or full-time as a co-op candidate. The student hiring process is quick and easy. Our service standards, not including security clearance, are:
- 20 business days for hiring a student
- 20 business days to bridge a student
You can now also hire a specific student from FSWEP if certain criteria are met. If your student worked with you all summer, follow the steps on the student re-hire webpage to create a new contract.
Student bridging
Recent graduates are a great source of talent. Student bridging offers a streamlined way to retain top student talent after graduation. All graduates, regardless of whether they worked for the Government of Canada (GC) or one of the Public Service Commission’s student programs, who have graduated in the past five years are eligible to be bridged into term or indeterminate positions.
Student bridging has many benefits. Support your organizational and public service-wide renewal goals, including:
- Bringing in new skills
- Maintaining continuity and knowledge transfer within teams
- Reducing onboarding and training time
- Supporting employment equity, diversity, and inclusion goals
- Strengthening the future workforce by retaining motivated and experienced individuals
Hiring managers play a key role in protecting the integrity of the GC’s staffing process. It is essential that all hiring decisions reflect the core values of fairness, transparency, and merit, and are made objectively free from personal favouritism or influence.
Need support?
- If you need support finding a student for your team, contact the National Student Hiring Team at civ.dnd.nationalstudenthiring-embauchenationaleetudiants.mdn@forces.gc.ca.
- When submitting a request, consider hiring a student from an identified employment equity group first. If you are ready to hire or rehire a student candidate, submit a request through HR Connect RH or by calling 1-833-747-6363. HR Connect RH agents can complete the online staffing HR Request.
- For questions about conflict of interest, contact coidep-ciped@forces.gc.ca.
Associated links
- New conflict of interest attestation in staffing
- Hire a specific student to meet your student hiring goals! – Canada.ca
- Federal Student Work Experience Program – Information for managers – Canada.ca
- National Defence, Defence Ethics – Conflict of Interest
- DND and Canadian Armed Forces Code of Values and Ethics
- Values and Ethics Code for the Public Sector