EHRC — Empowering Futures (Electricity Sector Student Work Placement)
Compared with the 241 other application forms we have read
- Scored mainly on the jobs it creates for other people. 22 lead with that.
- Most rejections here are settled before you write a word: they turn on who you are, not how well you argue.
- What does not disqualify you: Net New below 100 FTE; No direct deposit at application. 118 record an exemption like this.
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Eligibility & Details
What this program funds and who can apply
Program Description
Empowering Futures provides wage subsidies to Canadian electricity-sector employers who create paid co-op, internship, or applied-research placements for post-secondary students. EHRC delivers this program on behalf of ESDC's federal Student Work Placement Program (SWPP), reimbursing up to $5,000 per placement. Since April 1, 2026, only employers with 100 or more full-time employees must demonstrate that the position is net new.
Eligibility Requirements
- Employer must be a Canadian-owned company
- Employer's primary activity must be the generation, transmission or distribution of electricity; or sector support (including renewables) in R&D, business development or energy efficiency; or the manufacturing of equipment or provision of services necessary for generation, transmission or distribution
- EV charging, smart-city, smart-grid and energy-storage firms are not named on EHRC's published eligibility list — they may qualify as sector support or as necessary services, but confirm with EHRC first
- Net New rule: as of April 1, 2026 only medium and large businesses (100+ full-time employees) must demonstrate a net-new opportunity; smaller employers are not held to it
- The placement may not be funded through another federal program
- Placements must not be longer than one year.
- Student must be enrolled full- or part-time at a Canadian post-secondary institution in a science, technology, engineering, mathematics, arts or business program
- Student must have started their academic program before the placement begins
- The work placement must align with the student's post-secondary program (EHRC: placements must have ties to the student's studies)
- Student must be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or have refugee status
- Student must be legally entitled to work in the relevant province
- Employers must not recruit and retain friends or family members as participants, or must have a sufficient nepotism policy in place
- Retroactive applications are not accepted
- The same student is not eligible for multiple rounds of funding for the same type of employment with the same employer
- Post-secondary institutions may not apply as employers under this program
- Federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments are ineligible as employers
- Financial sector employers with 500 or more employees are not eligible
- Trades and apprenticeships, clinical hours in healthcare and articling hours for lawyers do not count as work-integrated learning under this program
- Subcontract or contractor positions are not eligible, and the placement cannot be filled by a business owner or an existing employee
- As of April 1, 2026, apprenticeships and short-term or seasonal roles are not eligible
- The placement must be completed by March 31, 2027.
- Employers must pay at least 50% of each participant's salary.
Quick Assessment
Funding Details
- Amount
- Up to $5,000 per placement
- Type
- Grant
- Level
- Federal
- Co-Funding
- Up to 50% of eligible costs
- Deadline
- Rolling — accepting applications for placements starting on or after August 1, 2026; program runs to March 31, 2027
Program Scorecard
Competition, effort, and approval at a glance
Accessible — straightforward requirements
Below average competition
Easy — minimal documentation
How to Win
Insider tips, common pitfalls, and what successful applicants look like
Insider TipApply as early as possible in each semester — SWPP funding is first-come, first-served and runs out — and always before the placement starts, since retroactive applications are refused.
Rejection Pitfalls 13
- Employer is not Canadian-owned
Success Profile
Evaluation Criteria
How Electricity Human Resources Canada judges your application
What the reviewer scores, what gets applications rejected, and what to write.
Distilled from 6+ source documents, condensed into one brief. Sources as of 2026-09-11.
6 of the sources
- Empowering Futures - EHRC ehrc.ca
- Empowering Futures - programme overview ehrc.ca
- Funding for Futures - Help Guide for Employers ehrc.ca
- Funding for Futures - Help Guide for Participants ehrc.ca
- Funding | EHRC | Funding For Futures ehrc.fundingforfutures.ca
- Create your organization's account ehrc.fundingforfutures.ca
Sign up free to save this programme and track your application in your workspace.
What Electricity Human Resources Canada favours
Funds co-ops, internships and work placements tied to studies◦
“Empowering Futures can fund co-ops, internships and work placements with ties to the students’ studies.”
The form
Set up your organization account
- 1Organization informationtable
- 2Majority ownership (self-identification)selection
- 3Industry type (the sector screen)selection
- 4Student hiring baseline and full-time employee count (Net New inputs)table
- 5Your information (account admin)table
- 6Account credentialsshort answer
- 7Direct deposittable
- 8Signing authoritytable
- 9Fiscal year startshort answer
- 10Final detailscheckbox
Apply for a placement
- 11Apply for funding: position title, position type and number of positionstable
- 12Participant for the positionyes/no + written
Do you have a participant for this position yet?
- 13Contract (DocuSign)checkbox
Run the placement
- 14Formal Learning Planwritten answer
The company must develop a Formal Learning Plan with the participant, before the start of the placement.
- 15Monthly claims and progress reportstable
- 16Employer evaluation surveywritten answer
Electricity Human Resources Canada states no length limits for these answers.
Judged against
- 1
Is this employer eligible and in the sector?
Show them Pick the industry type that matches how you serve electricity generation, transmission or distribution, and get your legal name, business number and ownership answer right.◦
In the funder’s words · 2
- EHRC reserves the right to apply additional criteria to eligibility to ensure national and equitable representation of our funded programs.
- Applicants may be required to participate in a video onboarding call prior to approval.
- 2
Do the positions beat last year's baseline?
What to show, and the funder’s 1 criterion behind it in Premium
- 3
Will the placement and student pass the check?
What to show, and the funder’s 1 criterion behind it in Premium
Where applicants fail
“You will not be able to receive reimbursement without submitting this information.”
“The placement will not be marked as complete until both the employer and participant have successfully completed their individual survey links.”
“Do not add the placement participant's information.”
Premium · the rest of this brief
See all 23 rules that can reject you and every criterion you are judged on. Then we draft your application for you.
14 more rules that can reject you · 2 more criteria · 13 more prompts
Do you pass?
Each one can rule you out. Tick the ones you meet.
You
No retroactive applications
Retroactive applications are not accepted.
Your business
Canadian-owned company
Canadian-owned company
Generate, transmit or distribute electricity
Firms whose primary activity is the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity.
Sector support (R&D, business development, efficiency)
Sector support, including renewables, in any of the following areas: R & D, business development, energy efficiency.
Not a large financial employer
Financial sector employers with 500 or more employees
Pay at least 50% of salary
Employers must pay at least 50% of each participant’s salary.
Your organisation
Not a government body
Federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments
The project
Wages not federally funded elsewhere
The wages/training costs for this position are not funded by another federally-funded program
Placement under one year
Placements must not be longer than one year.
2 things this funder says you do NOT need, in Premium.
Documents to attach
Ticks are kept on this device.
The money
Subsidy rate50% of gross pay, max $5,000
The standard subsidy reimbursement is 50% of the student’s gross paystubs, up to a maximum of $5,000.00 per placement
Your shareat least 50% of salary
Employers must pay at least 50% of each participant’s salary.
Stackingno other federal program funding
The wages/training costs for this position are not funded by another federally-funded program
Costs before approvalno retroactive applications
Retroactive applications are not accepted.
What it pays for · 1
- Covers up to 50% of gross wages
What it does not pay for · 1
- The wages/training costs for this position are not funded by another federally-funded program
From application to money
- Possible onboarding callVideo onboarding call may be required
- Apply in the portalApply in portal; placements from Aug. 1, 2026
- EHRC reviewsunder 10 business daysDecision under 10 business days
- Sign the contractContract sent via DocuSign
- Learning planMarch 31, 2027Learning plan ready by March 31, 2027
- Claims and surveysMonthly claims; survey two weeks before end
In the funder’s words · 6
- Possible onboarding call
- Applicants may be required to participate in a video onboarding call prior to approval.
- Apply in the portal
- The employer fills out an online application for the placements they would like to be funded.
- EHRC reviews
- The application is reviewed. Processing time is under 10 business days.
- Sign the contract
- The contract goes to your signing authorities through DocuSign.
- Learning plan
- Draft the learning plan with your student and have it ready before the placement starts.
- Claims and surveys
- Submit monthly claims with paystubs and progress reports, and complete your survey two weeks before the placement ends.
Quoted lines are word for word from the source documents; lines marked ◦ are our reading of them.
Everything you need to win EHRC — Empowering Futures (Electricity Sec...
Not a marketing summary. The actual checklist, intel, and stack strategy reviewers look for.
- 13 rejection pitfalls reviewers flag — so you catch them first
- 8-document checklist with what each reviewer is actually checking
- Your Application Game Plan — the print-ready PDF the preview below describes
- 5-step application timeline with prep hours per step
- Insider tip from program officers on what separates winners
- 4-program stacking strategy to combine with compatible funding
- Success profile + evaluation criteria — exactly what reviewers score on
Application Playbook
Step-by-step process, required documents, and expenses
Application Steps
Required Documents 8
Eligible Expenses 2
Ineligible Expenses 4
Intake Periods
Deadline Notes
Ineligible Organizations
Funding Stack Strategy
Compatible programs, clawback risk, and combined funding potential
Compatible Programs
Clawback Risk
Medium RiskHow EHRC — Empowering Futures (Electricity Sec... Compares
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