Settlement agency is not for all immigrants

My wife recently joined me in Canada and to better equip herself for job search, she decided to visit a settlement agency for advice. She signed up for a job search seminar on how to market oneself. Here are a few things she learnt from the seminar:
- Don’t bother with cover letters, nobody reads them.
- Cold-calling companies and try to trick the receptionists to connect you with the manager so that you can “hard-sell” yourself. Most jobs in Canada are not posted.
- Have a short-term survival job while working towards your long-term career goal.

These all sounds reasonable, except that the audience of the seminar include a medical doctor, an electrical engineer, a pharmacist, and a scientist. These “career advice” are not applicable for this group unless they are seeking for a career change to small business! Here is why:

- As a student in one of the business schools in Toronto, the career office can’t stress enough to me the importance of having a well-written cover letter that explains “why this position, why this company, and why you”. In fact, this is echo by the countless recruiters I met in school during information sessions and mock interviews.
- In larger corporation, cold-calling does not work because hiring decision are made during budgeting process. Almost all the jobs I have had requires a business justification from the first line manager.
- Why most jobs in Canada are not posted? Because over 80% of business registrations in Canada are small and medium enterprise! So if you are targeting large corporates, you should focus on the 20% that go through a more rigorous process.
- Com’on, do I really need someone to tell me “suck it up” and work in Tim Hortons? I know that when I see my bank account goes to single digit!

So immigrants take note. While settlement agencies are really there to help, you need to know whether you are their target audience. If you are a professional, you should seek advice from the provincial professional bodies like bar association, medical college, etc. They are the ones who can give you relevant advice towards rebuilding your career here. This is particularly true for professionals that require a license to practice. For those highly-skilled immigrants who do not require a license in their profession, start with a recruiter. Better still, the one I find most effective is networking. Join a local religious institution, take a cheap or free short course and network with other people in class, etc.

There are good advice and bad advice. Advice is only good if it is applicable. Only you know your situation best so apply your best judgement to take which advice. Canada is a land of opportunity, but like the French word for opportunity, it is a “chance”. You can take it when it comes, but you can’t rush it.

Bon chance!