Emotional well-being during immigration, settlement & job seeking in Canada

Moving to a new country, adjusting to a new culture, and adapting to new employment realities are difficult transitions that can negatively impact your health, including your mental health. Change is difficult, but you can handle it. In times of change, learning how to support your mental health and how to get help if you need it, are critical to your ability to be resilient.

In this webinar, you’ll hear from Lawrence D. Blake, M.Phil, PhD(c), Canadian Mental Health Association and learn:

• What mental health is and how to talk about it
• How change and stress could impact your mental health
• How to recognize when you might benefit from support for your mental health
• Strategies to support yourself during stressful times

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A Canada InfoNet Success Story

The current pandemic situation has changed everyone’s lives and we know that for those immigrating to Canada at this time it might seem even harder to stay motivated to continue with your job search. These are challenging times but there is no reason to give up on your goals. Today we are sharing an inspiring story with you from one of our program participants.

Daniela is a food scientist from Brazil who immigrated to Canada in May 2020. She registered with Canada InfoNet for pre-arrival support for her job search and was able to secure a job offer before arriving in British Columbia. Daniela was very focused on her search and application, targeting jobs that really matched her profile, instead of applying for dozens of random jobs.

On top of going through our program’s e-learning modules, which give jobseekers a good understanding of job search in Canada and getting one-on-one employment counselling, here are some of the strategies that Daniela shared with us that helped her achieve her goal:

• Adjusted my resume to the Canadian style. Focused on writing keywords and numerical achievements.
• Connected to people from my area of expertise on Linkedin which was very helpful as they gave me some information about the job market and connected me with other important people (hiring managers, for example)
• Used the JobScan website, which was important to adequate my resume to each specific position I applied for.

When she was invited to attend an online interview, Daniela reached out to her employment specialist and asked for tips on interview preparation. They worked on common interview questions and discussed some cultural differences, which made her feel more confident for the interview.

Daniela shares some advice for jobseekers who are in the same situation:

“It is very important to look for job positions that are a good match for you and adapt your resume, using keywords. I made a list with several positions I found on Indeed or Linkedin and used their descriptions and keywords to prepare different resumes for me. 

Something that I did several times was to apply for a specific position and look for someone who worked for that company on Linkedin. I would then connect with that person and explain my situation: I would say I was going to immigrate to Canada, I had several years of experience in that area and I would ask if they could give me any suggestion. I got lots of positive replies and they even connected me to other people that could be important to help with an interview.”

After arriving in Canada and following the 14-day mandatory quarantine, Daniela has started her new job in British Columbia and is excited for what the future holds for her in Canada. We wish her all the best for her career and settlement in Canada.

Every individual experience in immigration and job seeking is different and with its own challenges, which is why, creating your personalized job search strategy is very important. If you have been approved for immigration, our Employment Specialists at Canada InfoNet can help you develop that strategy even before you come to Canada.