I can't Find a Job and It's been a year

[Tusubasa]

Hello everyone,

I really depressed at the moment. I have graduated last year may 2018 from Seneca College as a biotechnologist after that I've applied for my PGWP and I've got it. I am located in Toronto.

It's been a year since I've been applying for jobs without anything happening. I am one step away from getting the PR which is getting a year of work experience. I've been trying so hard to get a job. in fact, I went to various recruitment companies and they all said the same; " we are not allowed to help you since you do not have a PR or a citizenship". I honestly do not know what to do, my PGWP will end in 2 years now. I am not able to find a job to grant me enough points for the PR. I am 22 years old reaching 23 soon. I applied everywhere in Canada Toronto, Alberta, Quebec, BC, you name it, and nothing.

I am clueless and depressed now. I don't know what i am doing wrong here i ran out of ideas to help me out getting a job.

Please help me out here with suggestions or job offers something....

 

[21Goose]

Hello everyone,

I really depressed at the moment. I have graduated last year may 2018 from Seneca College as a biotechnologist after that I've applied for my PGWP and I've got it. I am located in Toronto.

It's been a year since I've been applying for jobs without anything happening. I am one step away from getting the PR which is getting a year of work experience. I've been trying so hard to get a job. in fact, I went to various recruitment companies and they all said the same; " we are not allowed to help you since you do not have a PR or a citizenship". I honestly do not know what to do, my PGWP will end in 2 years now. I am not able to find a job to grant me enough points for the PR. I am 22 years old reaching 23 soon. I applied everywhere in Canada Toronto, Alberta, Quebec, BC, you name it, and nothing.

I am clueless and depressed now. I don't know what i am doing wrong here i ran out of ideas to help me out getting a job.

Please help me out here with suggestions or job offers something....

What kind of jobs are you looking for?

One way of getting a job is networking through something like Meetup.com, but obviously that depends on the industry you're targeting.

 

[Tusubasa]

What kind of jobs are you looking for?

One way of getting a job is networking through something like Meetup.com, but obviously that depends on the industry you're targeting.

Laboratory environment ( except medical aka hospitals ) for example working as a laboratory technician/ Mirobiologist / Chemist etc....

I have been networking through LinkedIn but nothing...

 

[21Goose]

Laboratory environment ( except medical aka hospitals ) for example working as a laboratory technician/ Mirobiologist / Chemist etc....

I have been networking through LinkedIn but nothing...

LinkedIn is useless if you don't already have some work history or are some sort of exceptionally talented college student. In addition, LinkedIn really won't work for this field, it's more useful for tech/consulting/banking/etc.

You need to meet people in person. Have you tried https://www.meetup.com/Biology-Biotech-Science-Group/

Don't go there and ask for a job. Go there and talk to people who are presumably from the same field as you, and are interested in similar things. You will meet people who are working in labs and you can learn from them - how did they get a job?

Get to know people, show that you know what you're talking about, show your interest. Be friendly, not desperate.

It may not be this group specifically, I don't know much about the BioTech field. But there's bound to be a group that makes sense for you to join.

Think of other ways you can meet people in person in a non-judgmental environment.

 

[Tusubasa]

LinkedIn is useless if you don't already have some work history or are some sort of exceptionally talented college student. In addition, LinkedIn really won't work for this field, it's more useful for tech/consulting/banking/etc.

You need to meet people in person. Have you tried https://www.meetup.com/Biology-Biotech-Science-Group/

Don't go there and ask for a job. Go there and talk to people who are presumably from the same field as you, and are interested in similar things. You will meet people who are working in labs and you can learn from them - how did they get a job?

Get to know people, show that you know what you're talking about, show your interest. Be friendly, not desperate.

It may not be this group specifically, I don't know much about the BioTech field. But there's bound to be a group that makes sense for you to join.

Think of other ways you can meet people in person in a non-judgmental environment.

Thanks for the suggestion. I've tried meetup and it wasn't much of a help actually. I have exhausted every possible road " at least thats what i think" but no outcome...

 

[21Goose]

Thanks for the suggestion. I've tried meetup and it wasn't much of a help actually. I have exhausted every possible road " at least thats what i think" but no outcome...

I know job hunting can be tough, we've all been there. A friend of mine sent 300 applications before he got his first job after his Master's. And he had a double Master's in Math and Public Policy from UT Austin. He had a massive spreadsheet that tracked every application, jobs he was looking at, references he was gathering... it was crazy. It took him six months and the poor guy was quite depressed through that whole period.

He eventually got a job with the World Bank and now works at BCG.

Also, you may want to broaden your search and look at jobs outside your degree. What other skills do you have? Are you good at stats/data analysis? Lots of jobs there. Maybe you're good at writing? Jobs there as well.

Don't be too narrow in your job search as a fresh grad. You've got to be flexible. You have an open work permit so you can do anything, and if PR is your objective, all you need is a NOC B job. Heck, even a restaurant supervisor at a Starbucks qualifies - not saying that you shouldn't look at better jobs, but you need to figure out your priorities (money? career? PR? survival? etc.) and work towards a goal.

Hang in there and be systematic. You never know when opportunity comes knocking. Good luck.

 

[Tusubasa]

I know job hunting can be tough, we've all been there. A friend of mine sent 300 applications before he got his first job after his Master's. And he had a double Master's in Math and Public Policy from UT Austin. He had a massive spreadsheet that tracked every application, jobs he was looking at, references he was gathering... it was crazy. It took him six months and the poor guy was quite depressed through that whole period.

He eventually got a job with the World Bank and now works at BCG.

Also, you may want to broaden your search and look at jobs outside your degree. What other skills do you have? Are you good at stats/data analysis? Lots of jobs there. Maybe you're good at writing? Jobs there as well.

Don't be too narrow in your job search as a fresh grad. You've got to be flexible. You have an open work permit so you can do anything, and if PR is your objective, all you need is a NOC B job. Heck, even a restaurant supervisor at a Starbucks qualifies - not saying that you shouldn't look at better jobs, but you need to figure out your priorities (money? career? PR? survival? etc.) and work towards a goal.

Hang in there and be systematic. You never know when opportunity comes knocking. Good luck.

I really appreciate your motivation. my main goal is PR at the moment nothing but that. in addition, i did expand my search to administrative assistant with same scenario unfortunately. I do agree it hard to find a job and it makes you think you are just nothing

 

[canuck78]

You are likely competing with people with much more advanced degrees for these positions and can’t imagine there are thousands of these jobs around. Also would imagine that many of these jobs are government jobs so not having PR or citizenship will hurt if you are competing with other applicants. It’s unfortunate but proves that choice of degree is really important. Agree that you should branch out to other position. You are very young and, like many Canadian graduates, getting your first professional job can be very difficult. Best of luck.

 

[Bs65]

You are likely competing with people with much more advanced degrees for these positions and can’t imagine there are thousands of these jobs around. Also would imagine that many of these jobs are government jobs so not having PR or citizenship will hurt if you are competing with other applicants. It’s unfortunate but proves that choice of degree is really important. Agree that you should branch out to other position. You are very young and, like many Canadian graduates, getting your first professional job can be very difficult. Best of luck.

Agree and new graduates being challenged getting their first job is not unique to Canada it is a common scenario in any country where many graduates start off with low paid jobs to keep motivated.

As implied above the OP maybe needs to focus on making good use of the PGWP by getting any Canadian experience, preferably NOC 0,A or B even a supervisory job in a restaurant is still a means to an end. There are a lot of roles even in B category that can be surprising to qualify towards PR, I even saw someone here wanting to claim as an athlete being a professional poker player and there have been people claiming as supervisors in gas stations or fast food places.

Easy to understand why employment agencies are saying what they are specifically about PR or citizens focusing on your biotech aspirations , although saying they are not allowed is a bit of a stretch . The temp nature of your permit means that they know employers want long term commitment in biotech field not someone who could be gone in a year or 2 so commission wise as well not worth their effort.

The OP just coming up to 23 is at least positive in that they can if required return to their home country and get that experience in biotech. Could be worse being a new PR with a family to feed, full of dreams arriving in a new country having given everything up at home and struggling to find a job as many new immigrants do.

 

[xylene]

Laboratory environment ( except medical aka hospitals ) for example working as a laboratory technician/ Mirobiologist / Chemist etc....

I have been networking through LinkedIn but nothing...

You may want to broaden your job search. Looking in Clinical research as well.

 

[scylla]

Laboratory environment ( except medical aka hospitals ) for example working as a laboratory technician/ Mirobiologist / Chemist etc....

I have been networking through LinkedIn but nothing...

IMO you should be looking for any NOC A, B or 0 job and not limiting yourself just to this field. Your search is too narrow.

Sounds like you still have 2 years left on your PGWP - so that's certainly good news.

 

[21Goose]

I really appreciate your motivation. my main goal is PR at the moment nothing but that. in addition, i did expand my search to administrative assistant with same scenario unfortunately. I do agree it hard to find a job and it makes you think you are just nothing

Since you're looking for a PR, get any NOC B job.

Go through this list here - > https://www.canadavisa.com/immigration-eligible-occupations.html#gs.a1mu9p

See what jobs you can realistically apply for. Maybe: 0631 Restaurant and Food Service Managers

Go look up the NOC requirements to make sure you understand what qualifies. Then go look for those jobs.

 

[Kumuluswolken]

Since you recently graduated I can recommend the ADaPT program of Ryerson University:
https://www.ryerson.ca/adapt/

That is a program for recent or soon-to-be graduates with a lot of workshops focused on networking, resume writing, interview preparation and actual practical skills (working with InDesign, Photoshop, Google Analytics, Webdesign, R etc.). They provide networking opportunities with employers and they try to place you in internships.
It is free of charge and you don't need to be a Ryerson graduate. They do, however, have an interview process since the spots are limited.

I arrived in Canada last year with a work & holiday visa waiting for my PR and it helped me a lot to get used to the Canadian environment and how to adapt. I found a job without their help, nevertheless I think it is a good point to start off.

They do multiple rounds of this program over the year. I don't know when the next one is starting, though.

Other than that I can agree with the others. Pure LinkedIn networking is useless, its better to go to meetups, conferences and whatnot and have smalltalk with people. The more people you know, the better the chances are something might come around.

 

[Tusubasa]

You are likely competing with people with much more advanced degrees for these positions and can’t imagine there are thousands of these jobs around. Also would imagine that many of these jobs are government jobs so not having PR or citizenship will hurt if you are competing with other applicants. It’s unfortunate but proves that choice of degree is really important. Agree that you should branch out to other position. You are very young and, like many Canadian graduates, getting your first professional job can be very difficult. Best of luck.

it is frustrating and at the moment i do regret the choice of career i made. and it is kinda unfair the way they treat none PR / Citizenship holders.

 

[Tusubasa]

Agree and new graduates being challenged getting their first job is not unique to Canada it is a common scenario in any country where many graduates start off with low paid jobs to keep motivated.

As implied above the OP maybe needs to focus on making good use of the PGWP by getting any Canadian experience, preferably NOC 0,A or B even a supervisory job in a restaurant is still a means to an end. There are a lot of roles even in B category that can be surprising to qualify towards PR, I even saw someone here wanting to claim as an athlete being a professional poker player and there have been people claiming as supervisors in gas stations or fast food places.

Easy to understand why employment agencies are saying what they are specifically about PR or citizens focusing on your biotech aspirations , although saying they are not allowed is a bit of a stretch . The temp nature of your permit means that they know employers want long term commitment in biotech field not someone who could be gone in a year or 2 so commission wise as well not worth their effort.

The OP just coming up to 23 is at least positive in that they can if required return to their home country and get that experience in biotech. Could be worse being a new PR with a family to feed, full of dreams arriving in a new country having given everything up at home and struggling to find a job as many new immigrants do.

In regards of that, i have relatives that own a small restaurant in Canada. if they hired me as a super-visor or a manager of their restaurant * while not actually managing but as a title " would that qualify me for a PR ? or does the restaurant has to be well known and with big reputation etc... ???