₦airaland Forum

ceemac:
Great piece there, but I will disagree slightly with the quoted.

If by any means you can pursue a Masters degree on arrival, please kindly do. There are range of reputable companies that recruits and demands for the most recent transcripts that you have to influencing considerations for entry level jobs and junior role jobs. Did I also miss to tell you that you also have the opportunity of pursuing a co-op Maters that can grant you the needed leg in the door? You also can be hired or make necessary industrial contacts via your research(if research masters) or through career fairs targeted at students and colleges. Finally, there is this unofficial sentiments for Canadian graduates.

A person with a MSc will automatically be better placed in comparison with a BSc holder when every other boxes are equally ticked.

I do agree that most jobs gives a baseline qualification for BSc. but if you were an an employer, will you not rather employ a MSc. holder for same cost and while considering the added value in the long run?

Indeed many factors plays out, Having an added degree is a coloured feather.

maziude:
Yes boss. Some uber guys might have. Just to be safe have yours...

Obi1conte:
Thx for the review.
Should i be worried about the part that they trash people's food items?

Barryston:
Please house,I just landed in Calgary and ive been searching for house for my family of 3...Basement oo,Condo oo,Apartment oo....please anyone,i dont have anybody in Calgary and ive been spending on Air bnb....please i will appreciate any help,Ive not even started looking for a job because this house is more important....

wizean:
My brother, rentfaster or kijiji is your best bet for accommodation. You will find alot there.

Barryston:
I have been on rentfaster like forever...its either the place is not immediate or they want to see my employment history in Canada..i even checked one this afternoon but the landlord doesnt want married people with a child...o su mi

hayor2014:
It's fairly easy, download the rentfaster app from the play store, but you need someone to go help you check the apartment though, I could give you the number of my property manager.... Check this website...

https://www.rentfaster.ca/ab/calgary/rentals/?user_ID=20919

Just pick her number from the listed apartment

guitarlife2:
Please send me a mail at ayonaira2@zoho.com .

Ramj:
You mean food items that are not allowed.

All airlines have things they do not allow plus airport security also check things like Palm oil and all...

So if you are worried about whats not allowed don't take them.

But that should be the least of your worries

Je m'appelle Ramj

Ramj:
You mean food items that are not allowed.

All airlines have things they do not allow plus airport security also check things like Palm oil and all...

So if you are worried about whats not allowed don't take them.

But that should be the least of your worries

Je m'appelle Ramj

Barryston:
I have been on rentfaster like forever...its either the place is not immediate or they want to see my employment history in Canada..i even checked one this afternoon but the landlord doesnt want married people with a child...o su mi

msmodi:
Please oo, URGENTLY in need of an accommodation (temporary or permanent) in London, Ontario. Airbnb has not really been working for me right now. I am landing 2nd week in May. Any assistance will really be appreciated. Thanks.

Barryston:
Please house,I just landed in Calgary and ive been searching for house for my family of 3...Basement oo,Condo oo,Apartment oo....please anyone,i dont have anybody in Calgary and ive been spending on Air bnb....please i will appreciate any help,Ive not even started looking for a job because this house is more important....

guitarlife2:
Alot has been said already about carrying oil, bribing customs, beautiful landscapes, I do think the real reason most leave the comfort of their own Country is to get a decent job in Canada.
And to me this is the prayer of many including myself so I am not gonna bore you with what airlines I took or what we ate on the plane, that has been overflogged already.


to be continued............

guitarlife2:
Alot has been said already about carrying oil, bribing customs, beautiful landscapes, I do think the real reason most leave the comfort of their own Country is to get a decent job in Canada.
And to me this is the prayer of many including myself so I am not gonna bore you with what airlines I took or what we ate on the plane, that has been overflogged already.

I am gonna focus mostly on what I think is the best approach to getting a job as soon as possible based on my own experience. I do think IT practitioners would benefit most from this post but I believe there would be some take home for everyone regardless of which is your profession.

I was just about a year and some months into IT before I left Naija, Although I had written CCNA more than 10 years ago which eventually proved extremely pivotal in getting this wonderful role with a great company. To put things in proper perspective, my experience was very superficial and extremely disjointed. I could not claim to be a database admin, or network expert, or security professional or infrastructure guru.
So I claimed to be a service desk/helpdesk/desktop professional.

Point 1 : If you have atleast 1 year experience in IT your best route is to look towards the Servicedesk/Technical support /Enduser support role to get a lee way into the world of IT in Canada, If you have considerable experience in IT I'd advise you do a certification in that area to give you some credibility in the eye of the employers.

So how does this affect all the other professions or what can other professions too take away from this. I have a friend a physiotherapist in Naija but her profession will require some exams before she could practice. What happens is that even if she eventually passess the exam she would still be overqualified for most entry level roles and Canadians don't usually throw people without Canadian experience into managerial positions except in very rare cases. Rather than just wait for months to get into a particular role, you could plan to get into a role that is related into your targeted role even if the pay is not much. The idea is to hang around the corridor of the career you wanna do long term.

For health professionals, I'd advise you do a First aid / Aed course first week of landing and start looking out for Personal Support Worker jobs or something related to that. For people in Engineering, you could do a 3 month plc programming course in Naija and edit your resume as a technician instead of an Engineer to give you an edge. This brings me to my next point..

Point 2 : Most jobs in Canada do not require an MSC so please loose the MSC and put ur BSC

This point has already generated enough debate, but I stand on my premise. You will miss out on many job opportunities by putting MSC on your resume. I have experienced it. This is because Canadians do not accumulate degrees. Majority are content with a college degree and diploma.
HOw do you want an organisation to hire you if you have an MSC when your prospective supervisor only has a college diploma. It will be better if you put certifications on your resume.
More than 90% of jobs advertised in Canada require no more than a BSC, that should tell you how superfluous a MSC will be.
This is pretty straight forward, you put a MSC on your resume you already overqualified yourself. Except for roles like Senior Business Analysts and Data Scientists .
But if you are targeting entry level roles/intermediate level roles, please a BSC is just enough. They will not tell you they are not hiring you because of your MSC, except the job is requesting for a MSC please leave it at BSC.

Point 3: Your resume is the key to your happiness


Point 4 : Whatever you plan to do long term and regardless of how much money you carried try get into any kind of job at most 3 months but make sure your survival job will give you chance for interviews and job fairs.
I see alot of Nigerians with their arrogance and entitled mindset about not wanting to do survival jobs. My mindset changed the day I saw a chinese lady driving a 2018 model Toyota CRV car and still working at Walmart. She probably has another great job but has some days off and decided to work walmart. My own job is 4 days on and 3 days off, What am I supposed to be doing for 3 days that I am off ? Lounging or playing Candy Crush ? I have a unifrom now, yes ! A security guard uNIform well fitting sef lol. So I work 4 days work 2 days as a security guard and rest for 1 day.
Atleast for the first 2 years I believe an immigrant should be in hustle mode . There is nothing shameful in working survival job. Just dont let your work hours prevent you from going for proper interviews. YOu can learn to drive forklift in 1 day for about 160 Cad. You can apply to 7-11 stores etc.


Point 5 : Job fairs are critical

Point 6 : Connect with a NIgerian in your intended profession and if only to have them share their Resume with you
I was in Calgary for about 3 weeks and I did not get any interviews, I was lucky to reach out to a Nairalander who shared his resume with me. I modified my resume after his own resume and interviews started flying in.

Point 7 : Understand that your technical skills are less than 50% of the reasons you will be hired. Employers here want to see how conversational, relatable and confident you are . So look them in the eye, present a firm handshake and smile always. When you are answering any questions, be confident about it, even if you are saying rubbish smile with confidence and dont be shy to let the interviewer know you do not have answer to a question . They will appreciate your candour.

Point 8 : If you have multiple resumes which is pretty likely in the early days of hunting for jobs, please delete all information from your LINKEDIN account.
I remember applying for some business analysis positions with a very strong resume and I wondered why I did not get any feedback. Shortly after that I checked my linkedin account and realised most of those I applied to had checked my linkedin profile . Unfortunately my linkedin profile was designed at the time to highlight my Application Support experience and not business analysis.
Please do not make this mistake. If you are applying to different jobs with very different resumes, please delete information from your linkedin profile because the recruiters will look you up on linkedin.

Point 9 : If you are in Calgary and have banking experience please consider the BOW Valley college CRTP programme. I have heard good testimonies about that programme.


Point 10 : Create a compelling professional profile on INdeed, glassdor and monster with your location . Hiring managers will contact you from searching these platforms for potential fit staying around the job location.

Point 11 : Please apply for jobs in different cities or regions but put just Canada as your location on your resume. If your resume shows that you are not physically present in the location of the job you are applying to, most recruiters will not pursue you as they will not want to pay for relocation especially if the job is entry level.



[b]Point 12 : Respect the ATS as it throws out 95% of applications. Go on Indeed and glassdoor and identify the tools, processess and methodologies that your intended role demands in Canada. There is something called the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) which will screen out your application if these exact words do not reflect on your resume. 95% of applications are screened out using the application tracking system, for example as an IT person you would have worked with a customized IT service desk platform but the popular one in Canada is either ServiceNow or Remedy, it works exactly the same as our regular service desk so instead of putting another name for Service Desk tool that you can use, go on youtube, watch videos on Service now and REmedy for incident management and problem management (edureka channel on youtube has some lovely videos on this) then put that in your resume.

Here are some great links to look up if you are planning to land in Calgary. THese programmes are competitive and there is living allowance paid during the programme. Please apply early if you plan to attend to ensure you are selected.

For production workers and supply chain/industrial engineers
https://momentum.org/what-we-offer/get-a-good-job/trades-training-2/
http://www.motiveaction.com/
For IT people planning to switch to IT
https://momentum.org/what-we-offer/get-a-good-job/tech-plus-networking-and-cloud-technology-training/
For transitioning to supply chain roles
https://www.lifemark.ca/supply-chain


to be continued............

Balenciaga28:
Good evening
Is there anything like Temporary Residence With Work permit visa in Canada

Barryston:
I have been on rentfaster like forever...its either the place is not immediate or they want to see my employment history in Canada..i even checked one this afternoon but the landlord doesnt want married people with a child...o su mi

Java47:
Hello House,

Quick one for those currently in Toronto, have a good cyber security background, few years experience in using SIEMs and security applications (Splunk, QRadar, Carbon Black etc) and you know you're definitely serious in building your security career, DM me let's see if we can work something out before month's end. Headcount is for 3 people so be serious.
NB:I'm only linking you up.
Thanks!

Olusapo:
Hi house.Pls can i apply for a Canadian visa with a virgin international passport?

Barryston:
I have been on rentfaster like forever...its either the place is not immediate or they want to see my employment history in Canada..i even checked one this afternoon but the landlord doesnt want married people with a child...o su mi

Olusapo:
Hi house.Pls can i apply for a Canadian visa with a virgin international passport?

Ramj:
You mean food items that are not allowed...

Je m'appelle Ramj

mbhs139:
So, I have shared. Please share with other Nigerians especially those whose cargo will be cleared at Halifax Port!

Adunnee:
please let us know the list of forbidden food items/general items. This list can be on page 1 of this thread for reference purpose.

Thank you.

Godisincontrol:
I earlier posted a link to the website where you can check for these (http://inspection.gc.ca/food/sfcr/information-for-consumers/travellers/what-can-i-bring-into-canada-/eng/1389648337546/1389648516990#a5) and it is referenced in page 1

https://www.nairaland.com/4933819/living-canada-life-canadian-immigrant#74340237

mbhs139:
On this POMO issue: Many Nigerians who Cargo POMO or have POMO in their luggage when coming into Canada are required to DECLARE it.

If you declare it at the point of entry or at their office when seeking Customs clearance for your goods, they will simply add your name to their violators list and you don't get to pay fine.

If you don't DECLARE it at this point, you will be issued a Notice of Violation which will contain a fine of $1,300.

You will be allowed to pay $650 (granted 50% discount) if you pay same day otherwise you pay the full amount.

In both scenarios, your name goes into their violators record and they will continue to add to this record the number of times you violated this laws.

I don't know if this information is later used against you especially when you are seeking Citizenship.

Finally, being a victim of this POMO wahala as at yesterday, the Customs Officer clearing my Cargo told me to tell my fellow Nigerians to stop bringing POMO to Canada.

It seems they now search for POMO physically in all Shipment coming from Nigeria. When they search, they shred your bags and leave your luggage as a heap of mess.

The Terminal Manager also told me that this is a regular occurence for Shipments coming from Nigeria.

They both wondered why we don't share this experiences with each other to avoid the losses.

So, I have shared. Please share with other Nigerians especially those whose cargo will be cleared at Halifax Port!