Meet Majid!
He immigrated to Canada 4 years ago with his wife and two children. As a mentor for Next Stop Canada, Majid hopes to help pre-arrival immigrants before their arrival to Canada.
Before immigrating to Canada himself, Majid worked as a Technical Sales Manager in the Engineering field. With much hard work and determination he now works in Automotive Manufacturing as a Senior Quality Engineer.
Upon arrival to Canada, Majid says there were many great things he immediately loved about Canada. He especially likes the fact that Canada is a place full of opportunities and where you can develop your abilities and skills for the future. Majid attributes his own personal success to getting help from the YMCA of Greater Toronto’s Newcomer Information Centre (NIC) and friends who encouraged him along the way. Getting familiar with the Canadian workplace culture was also very important in making a smooth transition to a job in Majid’s chosen field.
However, Majid’s journey was not completely without bumps along the way. He says his biggest barrier was learning the English language, which is very important in landing a job in Canada. He says he, “should have worked on my language skills before landing in Canada.” As this would have made it easier for him to land a job more quickly.
Majid understands how difficult it can be to land a first job in Canada, however he says, “never underestimate yourself. Be positive and be in touch with positive people, especially in the first months of landing.” With that, here are a few tips Majid urges you to take once you get to Canada:
- Improve your English language skills.
- Get to know the city where you will be living and the culture, because there will be differences.
- Become a volunteer. It is a great way to get experience, make friends and build your network.
