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Moving to Canada on a working holiday visa was made a little more difficult for many potential International Experience Canada (IEC) participants this year when the government announced a new demand for IEC participants to acquire a job offer before being called to apply for a work permit. Many IEC candidates are now scurrying to find work, which is a difficult obstacle to overcome, particularly for those who live outside of Canada and have no contacts with Canadian companies.
That’s why we’ve put together this list of handy tips to help Canada working holiday applicants meet the job offer criterion in 2021. Go straight to the list
Make your résumé and cover letter as Canadian as possible
If you want to apply for a job in Canada, be sure you have all of the necessary documentation. This comprises a résumé written in the Canadian style and, in many cases, a cover letter.
Make sure your resume is free of grammatical and spelling issues by checking it twice and three times. Since most employers just examine each CV for a few seconds, first impressions are crucial!
A cover letter is a one-page letter that you may be required to submit with your job application in Canada. It explains why you’re qualified for the job and highlights your relevant talents and achievements. Cover letters aren’t needed for many jobs, but even if they aren’t, adding one may genuinely help you stand out from the crowd – which brings us to our next point.
Stand out from the competition virtually
It’s difficult, but not impossible, to apply for a job in Canada while residing outside the country. Finding inventive methods to stand out from other candidates is one method to improve your chances of being hired. You’ll have to discover ways to accomplish things remotely in this era of Zoom.
Informational interviews are also an excellent opportunity to network with people in your field. Find mentors in Canada who work in your desired area and contact them to see if they’d be free for a Zoom meeting — simply to talk about the industry, not to apply for a job. These kinds of interviews may yield helpful information, and these kinds of relationships may help you find work in Canada’s hidden job market.
Look for an employer who is familiar with the IEC procedure.
Employers in Canada unfamiliar with the immigration procedure are typically unwilling to recruit working holiday Canada participants without a work visa. However, there are certain companies in Canada that like Working Holiday participants – some industries and companies rely on you to meet a specific demand each year. If you can find these employers, you’ll have a significantly better chance of being hired.
Don’t do unpaid jobs!
Some IEC members travel to Canada to volunteer or take up “work away” roles, where they labor on a farm in exchange for lodging and board but are not paid. Unfortunately, we’ve witnessed cases when Working Holiday applicants’ employment offers were turned down because they didn’t fulfill Canada’s minimum wage requirements. So, if you want your employment offer to be taken seriously, you must get paid!