IDT

I've applied for 100 jobs in Canada this year...of which I've never even been asked for an interview...

Seems odd despite having 13+ years experience in my field at a high level in the UK...

Anybody else had any similar experiences? How do you keep motivated?..

IDT

R I C H

Are you living in Canada with residency status?

If you're still in the UK and hoping for an opportunity it's going to be a tough sell - what do you think you offer to an employer that someone living here can't supply? What would persuade an employer to go through all the hassle of helping you with the emigration process?

IDT

In the UK at the moment!

I worked in Vancouver for 13 months in 2010 so I have a track record over there...

I understand what you're saying - but surely, with so much experience you'd have thought I'd have had at least one curious email back?!?

Siouxie

I applied for more than 280 jobs over a 6 month period - whilst residing in Canada as a PR and with Canadian work experience.

I have more than 35 years experience in administration, office management, book-keeping and accounting in the UK, but that means diddly squat here.

I am now self employed.

IDT

That's crazy!

Siouxie

True, but unfortunately it's reality here unless you have very specific skills that are in demand or have credentials coming out of your ying yang - and better still know people who can get you an introduction or who can let you know of jobs that are available but perhaps have not been advertised.

Networking is really important in Canada if you are seeking employment.

Generally, I have found a high percentage of the jobs advertised have already been earmarked for an internal applicant (or relative) and they are just going through the motions.

I was told by a Government Employment Counsellor that I have 3 things against me.

1) Lack of recently obtained qualifications
2) Not sufficient Canadian experience (yup, those 30+ years in the UK count for nothing - and how do you get it if they won't give you a job)
3) My age ( I thought it was against the law to discriminate)

I gave up after that!

AdrianR

OP - you have to understand the Canadian employer's perspective on this. He has a position to fill, he advertises, he gets responses, he narrows them down.

Now - imagine yourself in his place - is he going to take the safe option (ie: no threat to his job or reputation) by sticking with the devil he knows (a Canadian) or is he going to take a risk by employing an untried, untested foreigner.

Yes - you are a foreigner to him. Unless your work is extremely specialized, a true niche market, and human nature being what it is, he will probably take the safer option.

That said, I feel your pain. HR departments here do not seem geared towards even a 'robot' response of, "Dear Applicant. Thanks for your resume but we will not be..." etc.

Like others said, you need to be here, feet on the ground, networking and talking to folk.

MillieF

I have only been here a short time, but have applied for 25 or so jobs that I have experience in, and I haven't been asked for an interview for one of them. It can be dispiriting. I know that the problem is that I am am unknown quantity here, and I don't know anybody very well yet. I am going to just keep plugging away at it though. OP, how is your Resumé? I had quite a big job to Canadianise my CV, and got help to do it. Best of luck!

Andy18913

Don't know if this will help but i thought id share my experience.

Last March (2011) when i decided it was time to try make the move ive wanted to do for a while so i sent out 25 CV's. i didn't get one reply not even any "No thanks". I was the same thinking why no interest at all.

I read many threads on these forums and saw that so many were saying how the job scene is different in Canada. Canadians prefer the face to face contact or verbal contact. So one Tuesday after being frustrated at not hearing anything i picked up the phone. i called the two biggest companies in the same industry im in here in UK.

The first guy was really nice. he explained he had no vacancies but to send my Resume and he knew others in the same industry he would pass it onto them. This gave me a lift and it was something positive. So i made the second call. This time was even better. This company had a position and we chatted for a while and he asked me if i could go see him. I went for the interview in July 2011. He offered me the job there and then. It blew me away. Sadly we got the LMO wrong and the refusal letter came through in Dec 2011. The company couldn't wait any longer. So i had to start again.

I used google and made a list of companies to call. In the last 18 months i have been to Canada 6 times. 5 of them to attend interviews. The last one being Sept this year and i was offered the job again. Once again there was an issue with the LMO but lucky for me the company are willing to try again and we are sending the second application next Tuesday. So im hoping a few months time i will be booking a one way flight.

A lot say its down to luck but i strongly believe you can make your own luck if you work for it.

Hope that helps. If you have any questions feel free to PM.

Andy.

Jennika

Thanks Andy for that info - I too have applied for many jobs and not heard anything back - planning to go to Canada in January so feel better knowing that face-to-face interactions and phonecalls might work more in my favour over there!

OnlineCB

It is incredibly difficult and can be soul destroying but you have to try not to take it personally and keep going. Andy's experience is similar to mine, it is difficult but you have to stay focussed and make finding a job a job.

One thing I would like to point out is that in some areas, hundreds of applicants may apply for certain positions. I know of one position at a preferred employer that had several thousand applications - even screening at that level is a nightmare and employers sadly don't have the resources to acknowledge applications.

Shard

In which industry are you applying IDT?

Certainly applying from abroad, even from out of province in Canada does not do you any favours. It's one of the easiest ways to eliminate people when there is a mass of qualified candidates, as "not being in town" is always a risk factor, no matter how small.

As Andy posted, if you can get to phoning potential employers, that will help you with credibility and will give you leads as to where jobs may be and/or your marketability.

Andy18913

Towniegirl makes a great point about how many apply for these jobs.

These days companies have hundreds maybe thousands apply for one place. So a lot of companies us software to scan CV's/Resumes. They dont have time to read every one.

When i first started i had a 4 page CV. i showed someone and they said it looked more like something i was sending to a dating agency .

They are not intrested in your life history only if you can do the job they are trying to fill.

So i changed it to a two page CV but then changed it for every job i applied for. I added key words that were used in the job advertisements. This way the software picked up those CV's.

I love what Towniegirl said "make finding a job, a job" that sums it up perfectly. Also be prepared for phone calls at strange times becasue of the time diff. The company im waiting on the LMO for at the moment. I was on the phone with the owner a few weeks ago at 2am (10pm in Ottawa).

Hope that help.

Andy

Aviator

Why? If you don't have legal residency and are overseas when applying, few would consider this if there are locals who can do the job, unless you have a very unique skill set that is not available locally.

When hiring, we look at the ones we're most interest in and contact those. tHis is the way it is done for the most part in Canada. the alternative is to come to Canada, network and meet people face to face.


You may also want to have a professional (in Canada) look at your cover letter and resume to see if it is lacking in some way. From my experience as an employer, most are, some sadly so. Paying for a resume service is a small investment in your future. A lot don't pay this as they believe they can do it themselves, from the ones I have seen this is not the case. very few people can create a top notch resume that gets attention.

Alan2005

Maybe aim for fewer, but higher quality, applications?