We sit in our car, waiting at the barbed wired gate. Contemplating, in our heads: Do we buzz #1, #2, or #3?

#3 - "Hovercraft," says the voice over the speaker as we explain we are here to visit intern Eryn Moore. The gate opens and we are admitted to the Coast Guard station.

Teacher Sandra Meier and I are here to visit Eryn on her work experience. We are escorted inside and soon meet 16 year-old Eryn in the hallway, walking towards us, full of excitement.

Some of Eryn's hobbies are swimming and sailing, both of which led her to choose the Coast Guard for her second work placement from Elgin Park Secondary in South Surrey.

Eryn gives us a tour with an aura of confidence about her, going into an explanation of anything of importance. As she passes other colleagues, she is greeted with nods and smiles. She introduces us to some of them, and they have nothing but glowing, praising words to say about her.

She takes us through to various ships and stations, leading us inside, explaining how everything works. She truly knew it all, none of our questions were left unanswered.

She talked to us about how she believes the co-op program is an “amazing opportunity” and argued it is beneficial to both students and companies. In fact, some of her new colleagues at the Coast Guard started off as co-op students with their work experiences leading them to a career in the field.

Currently, Elgin Park Secondary has 50 kids on work experience. For any businesses willing to take in students in the future, they can contact their local high schools for information on the program.

The work experience program enables students to test out what the work field is like, and leaves them with an impression they will take with them forever. This makes it extremely important that employers enter this with the right intentions. It cannot be stressed enough that businesses must be willing to work with the students – if not, it can be less than rewarding for both the employer and student.