What type of job one with CUAET visa and a Ukrainian law degree will be able to get in Canada?

[VitaliiAskingForAdvice]

I've read about IQAS assessment, and a law degree will probably be evaluated as a 'Bachelor's/Master's degree.' I'm 24 years old. My knowledge of English is Advanced (C1 - CEFR). With a work permit, I can apply for any job in Canada.
Will I be able to get a desk job (preferably in the field of law) or combine any unskilled job with pursuing a higher education in Canada?

 

[scylla]

I've read about IQAS assessment, and a law degree will probably be evaluated as a 'Bachelor's/Master's degree.' I'm 24 years old. My knowledge of English is Advanced (C1 - CEFR). With a work permit, I can apply for any job in Canada.
Will I be able to get a desk job (preferably in the field of law) or combine any unskilled job with pursuing a higher education in Canada?

If you want to pursue higher education in Canada, you will need to get a study permit and pay international student fees which are very expensive.

Your first question is a bit difficult to answer since it depends on a number of factors, including luck. Since you have strong English language abilities, it's certainly possible you will be able to land. And you can certainly aim for a desk job in the law field. You can also look at fields like anti-money laundering or compliance which have a legal element to them and where your educational background may be beneficial.

 

[canuck78]

I've read about IQAS assessment, and a law degree will probably be evaluated as a 'Bachelor's/Master's degree.' I'm 24 years old. My knowledge of English is Advanced (C1 - CEFR). With a work permit, I can apply for any job in Canada.
Will I be able to get a desk job (preferably in the field of law) or combine any unskilled job with pursuing a higher education in Canada?

Will likely be difficult getting a job in for example in a law firm. Maybe secretarial but jobs in law firms are in general tough to get even for lawyers. Do you have job experience from a well known employer. Well paying desk jobs are tough to come by for Canadian graduates who are 24 so would have realistic expectations.

 

[VitaliiAskingForAdvice]

Will likely be difficult getting a job in for example in a law firm. Maybe secretarial but jobs in law firms are in general tough to get even for lawyers. Do you have job experience from a well known employer. Well paying desk jobs are tough to come by for Canadian graduates who are 24 so would have realistic expectations.

Thanks for the answer and your time! I totally understand your point. It's very insightful.

I worked as a court reporter in a court of law. I quit it in a year, since I didn't want to be a part of a corrupted system as I witnessed the corruption and injustice myself. Now, I work as a junior lawyer in a small IT Law boutique. That, sadly, doesn't fall into the category of well-known employees.

The reason I am asking is that I want to better understand what skills are marketable in Canada before coming there. I can try to acquire new ones while it's still relatively safe where I'm situated at the moment.

I graduated in 2020 and I stopped seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses shortly after. In Canada, I just want to be financially self-sustainable, enjoy safe life and contribute to the community that cares about well-being of its members.

 

[canuck78]

Thanks for the answer and your time! I totally understand your point. It's very insightful.

I worked as a court reporter in a court of law. I quit it in a year, since I didn't want to be a part of a corrupted system as I witnessed the corruption and injustice myself. Now, I work as a junior lawyer in a small IT Law boutique. That, sadly, doesn't fall into the category of well-known employees.

The reason I am asking is that I want to better understand what skills are marketable in Canada before coming there. I can try to acquire new ones while it's still relatively safe where I'm situated at the moment.

I graduated in 2020 and I stopped seeing the world through rose-coloured glasses shortly after. In Canada, I just want to be financially self-sustainable, enjoy safe life and contribute to the community that cares about wellbeing of its members.

Canada is certainly lovely and people tend to be kind and friendly but not sure I would say that in this day and age I would say that well-being is prioritized. Europe priorities well-being more than Canada. As a young single person you should be able to be financially self-sufficient if you are prepared to work hard.

 

[scylla]

@scylla has suggested that you can also look at fields like anti-money laundering or compliance which have a legal element to them and where your educational background may be beneficial. Those will be government jobs and I would expect them to be difficult to access unless your legal training has made you familiar with a regulatory environment and legislation that closely resembles that which exists in Canada. Moreover, many of those jobs attract competition from Canadian lawyers who have little interest in working as practicing lawyers, but who want to make use of their legal training.

Just to clarify, I wasn't actually referring to government jobs at all. I was referring to compliance and AML jobs with big banks and other financial institutions - analyst roles in these divisions, not legal roles. All big banks have large AML and compliance teams. I can speak more specifically to AML jobs, for analyst jobs (vs. team managers), it's not expected that you are familiar with the AML regulatory enviornment or legislation in Canada. That's taught on the job. Of course there are backgrounds that the banks look for or certain experience that generally give someone a leg up over other applicants. Having a legal background (regardless of the country) would typically benefit a candidate in the hiring process since it would show an apptitute for understanding laws and regulations.

 

[VitaliiAskingForAdvice]

Thank you all so much, for you're so kind to take your time to respond and share your experience. I will be referring to this page a lot.
For now, I'll continue researching AML and compliance.

 

[canuck78]

Just to clarify, I wasn't actually referring to government jobs at all. I was referring to compliance and AML jobs with big banks and other financial institutions - analyst roles in these divisions, not legal roles. All big banks have large AML and compliance teams. I can speak more specifically to AML jobs, for analyst jobs (vs. team managers), it's not expected that you are familiar with the AML regulatory enviornment or legislation in Canada. That's taught on the job. Of course there are backgrounds that the banks look for or certain experience that generally give someone a leg up over other applicants. Having a legal background (regardless of the country) would typically benefit a candidate in the hiring process since it would show an apptitute for understanding laws and regulations.

Would still say getting a job or just securing an interview with one of the banks will be quite tough. If you know someone who could get you an interview that would be extremely helpful. Without Canadian job experience, not having much job experience in general, having foreign credentials,etc. just getting an interview will be quite challenging. Jobs at banks are very competitive because they usually offer good salaries and benefits. Do you know anyone in Canada or could you leverage being part of the Ukrainian community to try to find contacts in the field you want to work in? Most newcomers don’t start with their ideal jobs or jobs in their field. Many start over again and try to climb the ladder to better opportunities over time. As I previously said, job market can be tough for many young Canadians coming out of university especially at large recognizable employers that are known to pay well from banks to big tech. Assume you must be a woman if you are able to leave Ukraine. As long as you have realistic expectations and don’t see moving to Canada through rose-coloured glasses you should be fine although at least the first couple of years can be quite hard.

 

[scylla]

Would still say getting a job or just securing an interview with one of the banks will be quite tough. If you know someone who could get you an interview that would be extremely helpful. Without Canadian job experience, not having much job experience in general, having foreign credentials,etc. just getting an interview will be quite challenging. Jobs at banks are very competitive because they usually offer good salaries and benefits. Do you know anyone in Canada or could you leverage being part of the Ukrainian community to try to find contacts in the field you want to work in? Most newcomers don’t start with their ideal jobs or jobs in their field. Many start over again and try to climb the ladder to better opportunities over time. As I previously said, job market can be tough for many young Canadians coming out of university especially at large recognizable employers that are known to pay well from banks to big tech. Assume you must be a woman if you are able to leave Ukraine. As long as you have realistic expectations and don’t see moving to Canada through rose-coloured glasses you should be fine although at least the first couple of years can be quite hard.

Are you asking me or the OP?

There is quite a lot of help right now being provided by the Ukrainian community in Canada to help those arriving on CUAET visas get jobs, including bank and other jobs. Getting an interview isn't necessarily as impossible as you're making it out to be. Right now it's also quite challenging to fill roles (not enough candidates). From that perspective it's a great time to be looking.

 

[canuck78]

Are you asking me or the OP?

There is quite a lot of help right now being provided by the Ukrainian community in Canada to help those arriving on CUAET visas get jobs, including bank and other jobs. Getting an interview isn't necessarily as impossible as you're making it out to be. Right now it's also quite challenging to fill roles (not enough candidates). From that perspective it's a great time to be looking.

Meant for @VitaliiAskingForAdvice. With a limited work history it is harder to find Ukranians jobs especially in a field other than their training. Much easier to find a job for people with a longer work history and skills that are more easily transferable like IT for example. In general it is hard for young people to get into well paying jobs soon after graduation unless their training is in specific fields where there is a shortage. Just want @VitaliiAskingForAdvice to have realistic expectations of the job situation and not have the expectation that getting a similar job that they have in Ukraine when they get to Canada. They are still young and time to grow a career but the first few years tend to be challenging for most newcomers especially if you arrive without a job.