Journey to Canada Olga came to Canada two years ago from Belarus. Like many immigrants, she arrived with hope, determination, and a story shaped by difficult choices. She got married, and in order to build a new family life, she left behind everything she had worked so hard to achieve in Belarus: a successful career […]
Building Career Direction in Canada Nguyen Ngoc Anh Truong joined the IEP Foundation Program with three clear goals. She shared: “Firstly, I want to improve my communication and networking skills in the Canadian context, secondly, to enhance my employability in Canada, the lack of networking and Canadian experience has been one of my biggest challenges […]
Journey to finding IEP When Cristal Recio arrived in Toronto in 2025, she felt quite lost in such a large and unfamiliar professional landscape. “I remember attending an immigrant fair in downtown Toronto. There was an educational advisor from another institution told me that I should look into the IEP Program at York University”, she […]
Joining Bridging Pritika Raju joined the IEP Bridging Program after facing the real shock of the Canadian job market after arriving last year. “Although my skills are relevant here and I came with a wealth of experience; I did not know how to reach out to potential employers”, she explained. “I tried all the usual […]
Riwa Abdel Khalek joined the IEP program to “get a better understanding of the Canadian work culture and communication practices.” She explained it was hard for her to find work in Canada and decide which career path to follow. “I was struggling with networking and finding the right people/events to attend to grow my connections […]
For Hafasa Issa, transitioning to the Canadian workforce as a newcomer from Afghanistan came with significant challenges. Despite her strong academic background and experience as a Human Rights Officer, she struggled to gain recognition for her international qualifications in Canada. “As a newcomer from Afghanistan, I faced a lot of challenges when trying to find […]
With extensive experience in IT, network systems, and cybersecurity, Husam Yasin arrived in Canada eager to continue his career. However, like many internationally educated professionals, he faced challenges in understanding local hiring processes, adapting to workplace culture, and building a professional network from scratch. “I knew I had the technical skills, but I needed to […]
When Isnalvis Perez Lopez arrived in Canada, she faced an immediate and overwhelming challenge - a limited command of the English language. As a psychologist in her home country, communication had always been at the core of her work, making it especially difficult to adjust to this new reality. “I joined the IEP program because […]
When Yong Cheol Kim arrived in Canada, he faced common challenges that many newcomers experience—a lack of Canadian work experience, communication barriers, and difficulty building a professional network. Determined to establish himself in the job market, he turned to the IEP Foundation Bridging Program at York University. “The reason why I applied to the IEP […]
Alisa Teptiuk moved to Canada with a clear vision of what she needed to achieve to establish herself: “When I came to Canada, I realized that to settle here and secure a good job, I needed three essential things: Canadian education, connections, and Canadian work experience,” Alisa explains. Bridging the Gap With a strong background […]