As exciting as new experiences can be, it can certainly be confusing to be in an entirely new environment. Asma Obaidi was studying business administration when her family immigrated from Turkey, first arriving in Calgary, and then moving to Guelph. Once here, she couldn’t understand why she wasn’t receiving any follow-up from the many jobs she applied for. She was qualified and capable, and eager to start a position that would help her improve her English language skills.
That’s when an immigration services worker referred her to Lutherwood’s Youth Job Connection program, and she decided to give it a try.
Everything is different, Asma explains. From the job seeking process itself, to workplace culture, she was unfamiliar with Canadian experience and didn’t know what to expect. After giving Lutherwood a call and explaining her situation, she was able to attend program sessions at Lutherwood’s Guelph office, where she was provided with assistance with resume building, job searching, and interview preparation.
“I think it’s a very good program for young people,” Asma shared, “the people at Lutherwood are really supportive and want to help you, they want to help you find the job you want. That was the most important.”
For Asma, the job she wanted was a position that offered her the ability to engage in conversation to develop her English skills. She’s been working at a Tim Horton’s location for several months now and says this job meets her desire to practice her language skills and she enjoys how friendly everyone is. She is hopeful the next step in her career will be pursuing a degree, and would like to study computer science.