As you start to job search in Canada, a common response that you will be hearing as an international job seeker is “you need to have a Canadian experience”. Some employers prefer their candidates to have local experience in order to prove that they can fit in with the team.
Why do employers care about the Canadian experience?
The truth is that they might not care entirely! What they care about the most is whether or not the candidate can fit in well with the team and organizational culture. Having local experience either it is a volunteer position or a part-time position will help convince the employers that you have the soft skills required to work in a Canadian setting.
However, let’s be clear. Any employer should not require you to have Canadian experience in order to work in Canada or reject you for a job because you do not have local experience – that is discrimination.
How to gain the Canadian experience?
Canadian experience comes in many shapes and forms. How we describe Canadian experience is any experience gained in a Canadian setting. Nowadays, with everything being virtual, you do not even need to be in Canada to gain a Canadian experience. Gaining the experience can be through many ways, let’s name a few.
- Work experience
Of course, the best way to gain Canadian experience is through finding a job opportunity. This includes both part-time and full-time opportunities. It is common for international students like us to work part-time during our school but this doesn’t necessarily mean that the part-time job that we do is fully relevant to what we want to do after graduation. That’s why there are also multiple other ways to gain Canadian experience that will benefit your resume!
- Volunteering experience
Volunteering is when you do unpaid work for a good cause. The goal is to give back to the community and gain valuable experience. Volunteering can come in many shapes and forms. You can volunteer for non-profit organizations, university student clubs, or charity organizations for a good cause. Volunteering can be either short-term or long-term.
- Project experience
If you do not find the work or volunteer opportunities that fit your interest, why not create something of your own? You can start a MeetUp group, a charity organization, an online store, a photography project, or any other entrepreneurial project in Canada to gain relevant experience. Be careful with limitations around setting up a business and making revenue from your projects if you are still a student.
- Freelancing experience
You can also do freelancing work as an international student such as working for clients at a fixed hourly rate. You can find freelancing projects on websites like UpWork, Fiverr. Do note that this is only applicable if your permit allows you to work off-campus. If you are able to work off-campus, you will be able to work freelance for no more than 20 hours. If this is an option you want to pursue, make sure to file your tax accordingly.
