Mentoring Program Helps Both Internationally Trained Professionals and Guelph Companies

Guelph, June 22 2017 – Being new to Canada can be very challenging as newcomers must adapt to a different culture, language, work standards and job market. Highly-skilled professionals including PhD graduates, specialists in stock markets and engineers come to Canada as immigrants or refugees looking for a better quality of living, and Canada needs their skills and knowledge to continue to grow. Lutherwood’s mentorship program connects these highly-skilled internationally trained professionals with local professionals, which helps newcomers find work and local companies fill employment gaps.

According to the Ministry of Employment and Social Development Canada, newcomers hold 49% of the PhDs and 40% of the master’s degrees held in Canada. With the fastest growth expected for jobs that require university education, the need for these highly educated professionals will intensify. Yet highly-skilled professionals with valuable experience from their home country struggle to find relevant work and often end up working in an unrelated field.

“Many of our clients were well-established professionally in their country, but due to war, urban violence or even environmental pollution, they chose to come to Canada for a better life,” said Carlos Martins, Lutherwood Employment Consultant who leads the mentorship program. “We bring together internationally trained, highly skilled professionals and trades people in Guelph-Wellington with local volunteer mentors so they can learn about the local job market, learn about professional practice in Canada, and establish valuable networking connections.”

The Lutherwood Mentorship Alliance

Lutherwood is now launching a group of Canadian professionals and corporations called the Lutherwood Mentorship Alliance to build a larger network of community professionals interested in mentoring and tapping into the internationally trained professional pool. Canadian professionals in Guelph-Wellington and surrounding areas with more than 2 years of experience are encouraged to become a mentor. “Being a mentor is a two way relationship,” adds Carlos Martins. “You not only help the mentee, but you also have the opportunity to develop leadership excellence, strengthen your coaching skills, develop inter-cultural competency skills, learn more about international markets and gain access to potential recruits before the competition.”

The mentorship program is funded by the Government of Canada through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, and operated by Lutherwood. For more information on the program, being a mentee or being a mentor, please visit www.lutherwood.ca/mentorship or contact Carlos Martins at 519 822 4141 ext. 1164.

Lutherwood is a not-for-profit health and social service organization that supports youth with mental health issues, people at risk of being homeless, workers looking for employment and families in need of counselling. Its services are accessed by more than 14,000 people annually in Waterloo Region and Wellington County. For more information visit: www.lutherwood.ca

Media Contact:
Chris Sellers
Director, Marketing, Communications & Strategy
Lutherwood
519-707-1958 ext. 1237