RESEARCH-TO-ACTION: EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PROJECT

SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

Possibility Seeds’ Courage to Act project is leading the first national research-to-action project looking at sexual harassment faced by students in experiential learning contexts (such as internships, practicums, placements, and co-ops) at the post-secondary level.

There has been little to no research on this issue. Students are especially vulnerable to sexual harassment in the workplace as a result of power differentials between students and employers, supervisors, and instructors. Students also rely on experiential learning opportunities to complete their education and gain employment post-graduation.

Our research found that:

  • 1 in 2 post-secondary students have been subjected to at least one instance of sexual harassment in an experiential learning opportunity.

  • Nearly three-quarters of staff at post-secondary institutions were aware of at least one example of sexual harassment against an experiential learning student.

Social media graphic with a quote about sexual harassment and industry. The quote reads, 'I guess it [sexual harassment] is just the price I pay to be in my industry.' The background features abstract colorful patterns in pink, teal, and white, with a small leaves icon in the bottom right corner.

Sexual harassment should never be the price students pay to enter their industry. Possibility Seeds created several strategies, resources, and tools for post-secondary institutions, staff, students, and experiential learning providers to address this urgent issue. Download the resources below, and share widely with your network!

project RESOURCES

Download and share our suite of free practical tools and resources, including a model for responding to disclosures of sexual harassment and violence in professional settings; a workbook for building protocols to respond to sexual harassment and violence in experiential learning; and policy and legislative recommendations to protect students from sexual harassment and violence in experiential learning contexts.

Tools & Resources

Video Modules

Don’t know where to start? Follow along here!

Resources for Support

Find resources, support, and information on sexual harassment in your province or territory.

Download LIST OF SUPPORT resources here

The Research Team

A young woman with short dark hair and dark lipstick, smiling, wearing a white shirt, standing in front of a beige brick wall.

Britney De Costa (she/her)
Project Lead

Portrait of a woman with brown hair, wearing glasses, a black top, and a blue striped shirt, smiling against a plain gray wall.
A woman with long dark hair and hoop earrings, smiling, wearing a black blouse, standing in front of a beige brick wall.

Andréanne St-Gelais (she/her/elle)
Bilingual Project Coordinator

Farrah Khan (she/her)
Project Advisor

A young woman with long dark hair and a light blue shirt, smiling at the camera against a plain neutral background.

Laxana Paskaran (she/her)
Research Assistant

A woman with shoulder-length brown hair smiling, wearing a black blazer, a black and white checkered top, gold necklaces, standing in front of a wooden and stone wall.

Noémie Veilleux (she/her/elle)
Bilingual Research Assistant

A woman with long wavy hair that is purple at the ends, wearing a black t-shirt with a graphic design, and turquoise rainbow-shaped earrings.

Tess Hopkins (she/they)
MSW Placement Student

  • Adriana Berlingieri (She/her), Academic Research Associate, Centre for Research & Education on Violence Against Women & Children, Western University

    Aryanna Chartrand (She/her), Former Chairperson, Alliance of BC Students

    Blessie Mathew (She/her), Director, Career Centre, University of Alberta

    Jean-Pierre Fernandes (He/him), Senior Specialist, Diversity and Inclusion, City of Toronto

    Lianne Kendall Perfect (She/her), Sexual Violence Response Specialist, Centre for Equity and Inclusion, Sheridan College

    Maya Labrosse (Elle), Former President, Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec

    Farrah Khan (She/her), CEO, Possibility Seeds (on leave)

    Laxana Paskaran (She/her), Research Assistant, Possibility Seeds’ Experiential Learning Project

Community Partners

Logo of the College Student Alliance (CSA) with large letters 'CSA' and the words 'College Student Alliance' underneath, on a dark background.
Logo for the Canadian Association of Career Educators and Employers featuring stylized human figures surrounding a circular shape, with the acronym CACE and full organization name.
Logo of Union Étudiante du Québec with letters UEQ and stylized plants in blue and purple colors.
Logo of CASA and ACAE with a stylized Canadian maple leaf in red and a black outline of a cup or mug.
A logo with a series of green and blue circles decreasing in size, arranged vertically to resemble a stylized human-like figure, with the text "CACUSS / ASEUCC" below.
Logo for CERIC featuring five colorful hands forming a circle above the words 'CERIC' with the subtitle 'Advancing Career Development in Canada' and its French translation.
Logo of Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec with blue 3D cube and speech bubble, featuring French text and slogan.
Logo of the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) with an open blue book icon above the acronym NEADS and the full name in both English and French below.
Logo of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) featuring a stylized blue wave and orange sun with the text "National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration" underneath.
Logo with the words 'CEWIL | ECAIT' and 'CANADA' underneath, featuring red and blue design accents.
Logo of ACE WIL with the text Association for Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated Learning BC/Yukon.
Logo of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) with black background and blue text.
Logo of British Columbia Federation of Students with black lowercase letters 'b c f s' and the words 'british columbia federation of students' next to it.
Logo of AMS, featuring a dark blue sunburst symbol and the company's name in dark blue text, with the tagline 'EST. 1915' beneath.
Text that reads 'BC WIL Council' on a white background.