December 12, 2016 3 Comments

Success story: Mark found a job 3 days before arriving in Canada!

JVS Toronto’s CanPrep program is designed to guide internationally trained professionals through the challenging aspects of the Canadian job market. Many CanPrep participants find jobs in their field shortly after they arrive, and sometimes even before they have left their home country!

Mark is a Test Automation Engineer from Philippines who was able to secure a job offer in a similar position, 3 days before he arrived in Canada!

He believes a strong resume helped him find employment faster. He was able to build this resume with the help of personalized employment counseling, online learning modules and tools offered by the CanPrep program.

We asked Mark to tell us how CanPrep helped and to share some tips. This is what he had to say:

How has pre-arrival program helped ease your transition into Canada?
CanPrep pre-arrival program has helped me gain better understanding of the Canadian job market.

What aspects of the program did you find particularly helpful?
Resume building is one of the best aspects of the program. Without it, I would not have been able to get a job because my earlier resume wasn’t tailored to the Canadian job market.

What did you think would be your biggest challenges before arriving in Canada?
Finding a job, a place to live in and other settlement things to do during the first few weeks of arriving were certainly things I worried about.

What do you feel about the challenges post arrival?
Good research and preparing well for these challenges helped us settle much faster.

What are the various strategies you used that helped you find your job?
I did 3 main things which helped me find employment:

Tailored my resume to suit the Canadian job market with help from CanPrep program
Targeted jobs that match my skill set
Persistent in my job search

Any pre-arrival job search tips that you would like to share with other CanPrep participants who are looking to immigrate to Canada soon?
Prepare early, tailor your resume to the Canadian job market and specific to the industry as well. Apply to jobs even if only one or two of your major skills match.

Would you recommend CanPrep program to others, why?
Definitely! I feel that 70% of my success in landing a job before landing in Canada is because of the CanPrep program. Remaining 30% is on individuals to research companies, look for jobs and prepare and perform well in interviews.

Has Mark’s story motivated you? Are you ready to enrol in the CanPrep program? Register here!

Have a question you’d like answered in the CanPrep blog? Contact sharvari.jois@jvstoronto.org.

September 2, 2016 1 Comment

Success story: CanPrep helped Yana secure her dream job before arriving in Canada!

Yana is an internationally trained Software Developer who was able to secure her dream job before arriving in Canada. She attributes her success to the support of the CanPrep program and her Employment Counsellor. We asked Yana to share her amazing success story and advice for other soon-to-be Canadian immigrants:

How long after starting the CanPrep program did you secure the job?

Two months!

How has the CanPrep pre-arrival program helped ease your transition into Canada?

I was able to secure a job before arrival and avoid the risks and worries of being unemployed for months. It provided much-needed safety and reassurance of smooth transition. Not to mention that the job itself is my dream job! I hope everyone will have such a rewarding job search.

What aspects of the program did you find most helpful?

The one-on-one communication with a professional Counsellor is the best part of program. In the pre-arrival flurry it is easy to skip the consultations and lectures offered, but when the help is so personally directed at you it’s your responsibility to do your very best.

The personal touch also offers unparalleled credibility to the advice given: the internet (while mostly providing you with accurate information) is known to offer skewed or outdated opinions from time to time. Encouragement and moral support from the Counsellor is a big deal as well!

What did you think would be your biggest challenges before arriving in Canada?

I assumed it would be difficult to start speaking English since I’ve never used it for daily communication. Passing the trial period while taking care of post-arrival affairs seemed challenging as well. Mostly I was worried I would feel alone after all the warm goodbyes at home.

What do you feel about the challenges post-arrival?

Finding a permanent place to stay in Toronto turned out to be a much more involved process than I had thought. If I could, I would allow more time for it; a full month instead of two weeks in a temporary place. As for the anticipated challenges, speaking a foreign language feels more tiresome than difficult now.

My first month in Canada would have been impossible without my family taking care of home tasks while I was in the office, but it all worked well enough in the end. I also miss my friends and family but we try to keep in touch.

What are the strategies you used that helped you find your job?

I had tried sending out as many resumes with “templated” cover letters as I could prepare. I had made some critical mistakes, like focusing too much on past jobs instead of what benefits I would bring to new employers, and got mostly silence or rejection letters in response. I considered carefully what I wanted my job to look like, and spent a fair amount of time studying job search techniques during the CanPrep program. After my research I made just two applications, focusing on my cover letter and making it as persuasive as I could. One was a rejection, but another one (my favourite) became my current job! I was certainly very lucky.

When hiring a software developer personality is an important point to consider, which makes candidate’s message very relevant. My letter was found impressive enough for an interview, and while I was showing more general experience, drive and levelheadedness than skills with the exact technologies being used, I got an offer in a matter of days. The program helped me to have faith and put a lot of work upfront to make a well-prepared and precisely targeted application instead of hurriedly sending out lots of un-useful ones.

Any pre-arrival job search tips that you would like to share with other soon-to-be Canadian immigrants?

Rejection is a not a bad thing and may happen for a number of reasons. No-one would like a job where they do not fit in – if your best resume and honest cover letter was sent without a reply, the place may not be a good match for you!

A hand-crafted cover letter makes all the difference, giving an opportunity to connect to people on the other side; generic letters kill your chances – no one will notice the human being behind the text.

Ask yourself: if you honestly think you fit the job, what should you share about yourself to the recruiter/hiring manager to send her running to your future boss with your resume?

Would you recommend CanPrep to others?

I would certainly recommend it! The program offers comprehensive guidance through the process of finding a job in Canada, from the early steps to the completion. The highlight for me was the support and motivation from my Employment Counsellor to do better and keep trying.

Has Yana’s story motivated you to enroll yourself or someone you know in our program? Click here to register: https://www.jvstoronto.org/pre-arrival/canprep/#canprep-registration

Have a question you’d like answered in the CanPrep? Contact sharvari.jois@jvstoronto.org.

June 27, 2016 4 Comments

CanPrep can lead to jobs within a few days of arrival: A program graduate tells you how

Today, we are sharing an amazing story about CanPrep participant, Ravikesh, who landed a job just four days after arriving in Canada. Through our blog, we will share celebratory stories like Ravikesh’s success story and much more to keep you motivated through your pre-arrival job preparation process.

CanPrep graduate, Ravikesh, an Automotive Design Engineer, joined the program in January 2016 diligently working through the program modules, guided by his Employment Counsellor, Farah. Ravikesh arrived in Mississauga, Ontario and within four days of arriving has secured a job as an Automotive Design Engineer as a result of his pre-arrival job search preparation!

Ravikesh shares his success story with us in a recent interview:

How has pre-arrival program helped ease your transition into Canada?

I got to know detailed information about Canadian job market from Pre-arrival programs like CanPrep & Planning for Canada*. CanPrep helped me to modify my resume to suit the Canadian job market. Also, I received many resources to build my strategy to search for jobs in my field.

*Note: Planning for Canada is the referral partner of CanPrep

What aspects of the program did you find particularly helpful?

The entire program was very helpful! What I liked most are the resume building and employment counselling aspects.

What did you think would be your biggest challenges before arriving in Canada?

(Ravikesh laughed) Landing in an unknown country itself is the biggest challenge all immigrants face. To survive in a new country anyone needs to have a job, and especially in their own field. This was my biggest challenge to find a job in my field that matches my qualifications and experience.

What do you feel about the challenges post-arrival?

Since I was prepared for the job market here – from information I had received from pre-arrival programs (including CanPrep) – it was not a big surprise for me! Everything was smooth since I was already aware about what to do and what not to do.

What are the various strategies you used that helped you find your job?

Making a Canadian-style Resume
Networking on LinkedIn
Job search on (online) job boards like Indeed.ca and Workopolis.com

Any pre-arrival job search tips that you would like to share with other CanPrep participants who are looking to immigrate soon to Canada?

Yes! (Employment) Counsellors in the pre-arrival programs are knowledgeable and experienced – so take advice or information shared in the program seriously. I would suggest that you also focus on resume (creation) and LinkedIn networking.

Would you recommend CanPrep to others? Why?

Definitely! This is very helpful for any newcomer like me!

Have a question you’d like answered in the CanPrep? Contact sharvari.jois@jvstoronto.org.