Small Talk Works!

One day, shortly after arriving in Edmonton from The Philippines, Ria and her son insisted on taking the bus to a museum instead of waiting for her uncle to drive them. She wanted to be more independent in getting around the city after-all. While at the bus stop, she asked a gentleman if they were…

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Job Search Strategies = Success

Vivek and Manisha decided to move to Canada and chose British Columbia for its beauty, opportunities, and ethnic diversity. They heard about SOPA from Planning For Canada and decided to explore further by starting with the Job Search Strategies course. They discovered various methods of job search strategies from SOPA and, as their facilitator, I…

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Ella’s First Job in Canada

It didn’t take long for Ella Oteze to gain employment after landing in Regina. Ella is an industrious and outgoing career Mathematician from Nigeria with over ten years of experience in the finance and banking field. This experience, paired with new skills developed with SOPA’s pre-arrival courses, provided her the confidence that led to her…

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Be Better Prepared for Your New Life with Next Stop Canada

On April 1st, 2016, the YMCA of Greater Toronto’s Immigrant Services launched their pre-arrival program Next Stop Canada. Funded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the program’s primary objective is to provide quality settlement services to new immigrants before they arrive in Canada. The staff at Next Stop Canada, being immigrants themselves, have firsthand…

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