QLEARN Course Offering
Queen’s Learning in Evaluation and Applied Research Networks
QLEARN is part of a larger trend in universities toward community-engaged learning, an approach that connects classroom education with meaningful partnerships and critical reflection, benefiting both students and community organizations. As universities adopt the mission of community involvement, faculty, staff, students, and educational leaders work to build strong relationships with the wider community. These connections recognize the university’s historical role in democratizing knowledge while embracing its evolving responsibility to address global challenges.
QLEARN is a collaborative initiative designed to connect graduate students with meaningful internship experiences across various sectors. By fostering partnerships between academia and industry, QLEARN aims to enhance professional development and practical skills through immersive learning opportunities in program evaluation and research. The ideas for QLEARN were piloted in 2024-2025 representing a teaching and research synergy. You can read more about the pilot study and preliminary findings here. Data from the pilot study contributed to the expansion and design of QLEARN.
Course Dates & Details
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QLEARN (Queen’s Learning in Evaluation and Applied Research Networks), a graduate-level program running from September 2025 to April 2026.
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QLEARN connects community organizations with Queen’s University graduate students to collaborate on real-world projects in evaluation, applied research, and knowledge mobilization
Graduate Students
Two-credit graduate opportunity in the Faculty of Education
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EDUC 888: A course on equity-focused, community-based evaluation, participatory methods, and adult learning.
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EDUC 880: An internship that pairs students with partners from sectors such as education, health, social services, and the arts to address real community needs.
Community Partners
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Work with skilled interns trained in evaluation and community-engaged research
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Build organizational capacity by increasing access to information and resources to support evaluation and research
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Contribute to the development of future leaders in your sector
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Join a network of partners committed to equity, collaboration, and social change
Course Description
QLEARN is a two-credit graduate opportunity in the Faculty of Education, Queen’s University (September 2026–April 2027), designed to connect students with real-world evaluation and applied research through meaningful partnerships with community organizations.
Developed by Dr. Michelle Searle Director in the Assessment and Evaluation Centre in Education (AECE) and Associate Director of the Centre for Community Engagement and Social Change (CCESC), this initiative enables graduate students to develop competencies in evaluation, community-engaged research, and knowledge mobilization.
Course & Internship Timeline:
Fall: Foundational coursework, sector orientation and start internship.
Winter: Ongoing internship placement with community of practice.
Spring: Showcase event and reflection.
Program Information
Developed by Dr. Michelle Searle, QLEARN is an example of community-engaged pedagogy (Rubin et al., 2012), an approach that integrates knowledge, action, reflection, and real-world engagement into teaching practices. This pedagogy recognizes the self-directed nature of adult learners, who build on prior experiences and find motivation in learning that is relevant, problem-centred, and socially impactful.
QLEARN has several internal and external partners that enable graduate students to develop competencies in evaluation, community-engaged research, and knowledge mobilization.
Internship Sectors
Education: Collaborate with schools and educational organizations to develop and assess learning programs (e.g. HPCDSB, Pickering College, AIDAN Lab, Teaming Labs).
Healthcare: Engage in projects that improve community health outcomes and service delivery (e.g. Queen’s Medical School).
Non-Profit: Work with NGOs to support social initiatives and organizational development (e.g. Modern Fuel, Boys and Girls Club, Mentor Canada).
Government: Participate in policy analysis and program implementation at various governmental levels (e.g. City of Kingston).
Internal Partners
AECE (Assessment and Evaluation Centre in Education)
Specializes in program evaluation and applied research, providing students with real-world analytical experience.
CCESC (Community Collaboration and Engagement Support Centre)
Focuses on community-based projects, offering students hands-on engagement with local organizations.
Education Graduate Office
Oversees academic programs and supports graduate students in their educational and professional journeys.
Supports cross-institutional planning and delivery of experiential learning, providing advising for program development, collaboration, and sharing of resources through a central contact.
Stories of QLEARN Experiences
Experiential Learning in Action: Queen’s Community-Based Internship Program
Niki Boytchuk-Hale,
Queen's Rector
Get Involved
Community Organizations:
If you are interested in hosting an intern or becoming a partner, please complete the following survey by July 16.
Learners
Internships will be offered to all graduate students who are interested, start by enrolling in EDUC 888 and 882 on your planning forms (due to Education Graduate Office by July 18) to hold your spot, review the internship booklet (available on this site as of July 18) and complete a survey to tell us about you and identify internships of interest:
Learner Apply Now will be active July 18.
Apply for QLEARN
The Application to match student interns with community partners is now live! Please read about the potential community partners and complete the learner interest survey below! Rolling enrollment is open! Apply by September 5, 2025.
Contact us if you have questions or need more information.
Questions related to QLEARN:
Please email qeval@queensu.ca or Dr. Michelle Searle at searlem@queensu.ca.
Questions related to course enrolment and program planning:
Please email Jenny Lee Northey at grad.coordinator@queensu.ca.