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| Subject: Think about this before you decide to move |
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After 10 months in Canada a very sobering experience has taken the place of the euphoria when I got my landing papers.
If you are a skilled worker, in particular in finance, think very thoroughly about the following:
- having held senior finance positions in my home country, I had to discover that I am unable to find work in Canada. Why? If I apply for a job that requires less experience like an accounts payable clerk, I will not be contacted or I will be told that I am overqualified. If I apply to more senior positions, I am not contacted or I am told that my application can not be considered unfortunately because I do not hold a Canadian accounting degree (I hold one though from my home country in Europe but no one cares about that one, even though accounting is basically the same everywhere). If I am contacted and in the run, it quits having one applicant in the run who is working on his degree and I am out of the race. So on the job side a total bust.
- wanting to have the Canadian equivalencies of my degree established is flat out a joke. World Education Services, the company mandated by CIC, the government of Ontario and various regulatory bodies is only interested in reaping in my money. The regulatory body in my home country sent the required documents in French to WES, but forgot to fill out a piece of a form. WES received the documents and did nothing about it for 2 weeks. I only found out about the omission once I called a "customer service representative", who seemed rather uninterested that I was waiting for their report to improve my chances of employment. So I can send the document again to my home country, have the regulatory body in my home country send the whole package again, this time by courier at my cost and hope WES finally does something.
- the regulatory body in Canada for accountants also ensures that foreign trained nationals do not get their foot in the door. I can well go to school to acquire the Canadian degree, but a prerequisite is a bachelor´s degree, which my home country is only introducing in 2007. So to acquire the bachelor and the accounting degree will take me up to 7 years according to their website, so I´d be way past 40 and therefore too old to find a job. As it is a work/study program, I would have to find a job...see above.
A recent study has shown that around half of all skilled immigrants to Canada switch careers because they can´t find work in their own field.
So in conclusion:
- Either have pre-arranged employment
- or be rich enough to not have to work
- or be rich enought to buy yourself a company
- or be ready to fill up coffee at Canada´s favourite coffee shop
- or be ready to work for a placement agency giving you little temp jobs here and there, where you can impress employers with your knowledge, help them out when they´re in trouble and listen to them saying to you "you´re good and your resume is impressive but we unfortunately can´t hire anyone without a Canadian degree"
- and for those who believe it has something to do with skin colour: no it does not, I blend in just fine, even my English is considered good.
If you think you can make it, well then all the power to you! I´ve killed off the resumes lingering around on job sites, they served me nothing at all and I will have to decide very soon whether I should not pack the container and go back home.
[22-06-2006,13:25]
[***.59.236.80]
disappointed |
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(in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
My advise is to go back to school to upgrade your skills. There is never an age to learn..
[22-06-2006,21:53]
[**.244.28.123]
Peter |
(in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
I had a friend who went through the exact same thing: he is a chemist and wanted a job at his level (he had a PhD and a lot of experience). He kept on waiting for the job he deserved, but he never got it. 10 years later he settled for something smaller and he regreted every day that he did not go back to school from the moment he got to Canada.
[22-06-2006,23:23]
[**.70.95.204]
she |
(in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
as I stated in the first thread, I am going to school already since December and I am trying hard to get my credentials processed through WES. I sure as heck didn´t come here thinking that I am the hero that everyone waited for, because I know I am not. (And that´s not lack of self-esteem but realistic thinking!)
Maybe I am jumping the gun since Sharon said to count up to 3 years to settle. It´s just a bummer to constantly hear praises about the resume and then get the hammer with the CGA issue. I lose out to every person who is enrolled in a CGA program.
There is no sense waiting for the job that "one deserves", there is no such thing plus how do you define what you deserve? I know how to run a finance department but I don´t expect to run one here in Canada. Current times are employer times, so you have to pound the pavement to get a job, just sitting around brings no result.
As for changing careers, well I am also looking at that. If I find a business for sale that interests me, then why the heck should I insist on being in finance? Finance is not the only thing in this world, there´s other interesting jobs too. If a business is good enough to earn me a living, I am sure up for the adventure. Plus if I own a business, guess three times who runs the accounting... :-)
[23-06-2006,18:24]
[**.39.167.164]
disappointed |
(in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
This is so sober. This,I like reading about -prepare more.
To be on the save side;
1. one should consider studying further,
2. the earlier one starts studying the better,
3. most of resume praises are courtesy
am I getting this right?
write some more. wanna assimilate as much as possible. wanna adapt fast when the time comes.
write people, write!
[23-06-2006,18:54]
[**.251.132.10]
jolli |
(in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
1. yes, you can´t expect that your home country´s degrees etc are accepted in Canada. Even if you get transcripts and degree evaluation, you will still have to recertify depending on your profession. That doesn´t mean you should not have your degrees evaluated!
2. Studying only gets harder with age but also the earlier you start, the earlier you finish, altough finishing is relative as continuous learning becomes more and more important.
3. no, not obviously. For example in my case, and this without wanting to boast about myself, I do have excellent references and everyone who I worked for was very happy about my work. Employers here in Canada do look at your experience and also inquire about you in your home country. Don´t think if you give a reference it will not be contacted because it is in a far away country, so ensure to tell the truth and not pretend things you can not have independently confirmed. If you show up with a weak resume, you will not make it past the first round of selection, and if you get a job interview, companies ask about the weak points in your resume, but (at least in my experience) they also tell you what they like about your resume. In my last job application I had everything the company wanted, all the necessary experience, still I finished 2nd and the only reason I did not get the job was that the other candidate had a CGA designation, with which we come back to point 1.
So don´t procrastinate after you arrive. Focus on what you want to do in Canada BEFORE you come here, research possibilities before you move, start credential evaluation as soon as you get your landing papers and not only once you arrive in Canada. If you need something from your home country it is easier if you are there to get it than to mail and call halfways around the world. It is extremely important for you to be able to demonstrate to possible employers up front what credentials you have, besides the fact that it also shows that you prepared yourself before showing up. If you come and fuddle something about "I´m trying to have the credentials evaluated", it just does not help you at all.
And lastly, as you can read in one of my previous posts, have an alternatives plan. Don´t wait for the job that you expect to have based on experience, dreams or whatever (or how "she" said "the job you deserve") but look what other alternatives you are willing to explore like changing field of employment, becoming self-employed etc.
[24-06-2006,15:15]
[***.59.236.243]
disappointed |
(in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
This is why I always tell people to get at least half a million dollars before moving to Canada. But then they look surprised and say, "ain´t there easy cash in canada? If I had money, I would stay where i am at..." Well there is no solution to this issue. I hope you somehow find something that is interesting and brungs loads o´ loot. Gut luck
[24-06-2006,17:56]
[***.202.54.107]
Money Matters |
Anyone from Business Administration? (in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
Greetings:
Anyone from business administration with this problem?
Or anyone from IT?
[28-06-2006,20:21]
[***.201.35.51]
Jowey |
(in reply to: Think about this before you decide to move)
Jowey,
The problem of credential recognition is a general one, unless you have Canadian or US papers (Sharon, correct me if I am wrong, please). All other countries will need to see with the respective professional association but very few have agreements with foreign associations. In any case you should have your credentials evaluated by a specialized company/association. I used WES (www.wes.org/ca) which is mandated by the government so they say, but that also means that (at least in my case) their service is subpar. There are other such companies out there, do a little research on the web. And in any case, as i said earlier, start while you are in your home country, it is easier than from Canada getting the runs with your university etc.
Good luck!
[03-07-2006,23:40]
[**.39.167.237]
disappointed |
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