My most recent co-op probably changed my life and I only got it because I cold called a dream professor at my university and got an 8 month co-op. I got to work on green tech that I actually care about and my supervisor was so amazing and supportive.
I'm going to end this coop with 1 paper published, 1 paper under peer review and 1 manuscript done, all of which are viable for high impact journals. When I apply for Phd programs I'll actually have papers on my resume with me as 2nd author. The entire research group was super supportive and encouraged me aim higher than them and now professors at Ivy League tier universities are interested in having me as a PhD student.
All I have to do now is actually get into an ivy league school lol :P