Volunteering – Stepping stone to success by Shahd Salman

A full workload, busy schedule, and many new connections made. All these are a result of my volunteering experience here in Canada. As a newcomer looking to get into my field, I have been given a lot of different advice: get your certificates evaluated, get a Canadian diploma, recommendations of recruiting agencies I should join. All fair advice but the best advice I was given is to volunteer, so I did!

I’d like to take a moment to tell you the story of my volunteering journey and the benefits I have gained in the process. The search for my first volunteering experience started as soon as I became a permanent resident in Canada. Right away I began the process of getting a police check from the downtown Hamilton police headquarters and I started looking for the places in Hamilton that could use my help. I started off considering Wesley Urban Ministries as I knew it was an organization with limited resources that accommodates refugees and newcomers into Canada. Wesley was more than welcoming and appreciative of the time and help I had to offer, so I then signed up to be a registration assistant for their holiday Christmas store. In this role I assisted an employee from Wesley, who I now consider a friend and a connection to other professionals in my field of work. I got to meet people from all different walks of life and clients of Wesley of different nationalities and from different parts of the world. Each person has a unique story of their own about how and why they are now here in Canada. I learned the importance of small talk in this society, what topics are acceptable to speak on and what topics are not. Also, I learned how to use a new software and registration database that is now a skill that I can add to my resume.

That brings me to the second reason why volunteering is such a smart way to succeed in Canada. For many newcomers, a struggle they face when applying for jobs is their lack of Canadian work experience. I have good news for those who are struggling! Volunteering experience shows an employer not only your selflessness and caring for others but also that you can fit into the workplace because of your soft skills, such as your ability to work in a team, punctuality, honesty and most importantly your work ethics. Through a letter of reference, volunteering can be your guarantee/confirmation to a perspective employer that you will be a valuable addition to their team.

My volunteering journey did not stop there. I then came across the opportunity to volunteer right here at Mohawk College and for my love of books I became the class librarian of our mobile library. In this role I am required to keep records of the library books, make recommendations and encourage my classmates to read. This volunteering role has helped me to exercise my organizing skills.

Another current volunteering opportunity that I have joined is being part of the academic mentoring program at Empowerment Squared, which meets twice a week to offer free academic mentoring programs to newcomer children to help with their school readiness, academic literacy, and how to be effective community members. In this role I gained the friendship of many volunteers like myself and most importantly new professional relationships that have introduced me to other professionals in my field. I got to show those professionals first hand my work ethics, enthusiasm and the value I bring to a team.

In conclusion, the relationships I’ve built with these professionals give me a better chance of being able to target the 80% of jobs not advertised online, jobs that you only learn about through networking and connections. Remember, people hire people they like, know, trust! Volunteer, give selflessly, make friends and build professional relationships that with help pave your road to success.

Shahd Salman

I am a marketing graduate who recently moved to Canada from Sudan, and I'm excited about starting my career here in Canada.
I joined Newcomer Voices while I was taking the Workplace Preparation Program for internationally trained professionals which I found extremely beneficial as a newcomer.

And since being in Hamilton, waterfall capital city of the world, I plan on hiking all the waterfall trails.
Four down, only a 100+ more to go!