My Canadian Work Experience

By: Carrie Z. Chen, Career Centre Student Staff Member/Guest Blogger

Although two months have passed, I still remember the exciting moment when I received a job offer from the Laurier Career Centre. It was my first stepping stone into the Canadian work environment. This opportunity helped me understand cultural rules in a Canadian work environment and enriched my life experience of studying abroad.

Two months of working at the Career Centre has provided me with some key learning moments, which might be helpful for you as a newcomer to the Canadian workplace:

1. Take initiative
At the beginning of my position, I simply said hello to everybody, completed my timesheet, and sat there and waited for a senior to teach me. I didn’t take initiative to learn because I had a Chinese mind-set at that time. In China’s work environment, people think it is better for a new employee to wait for guidance and commands from supervisors, rather than show ambition and initiative. In Canada, however, taking initiative is generally considered to be a good quality. Supervisors and employers will expect people to take initiative, show their willingness to get adapted to the new environment and learn new things by themselves. I learned to initiate conversations with my supervisor, ask for assignments, and ask for feedback.

2. Asking for clarification is better than saying sorry
Working in a different culture and using a second language can cause confusion sometimes. In some scenarios, new employees might not understand the task given. In Canadian culture, it is fine to politely request the supervisor to repeat the command if you do not understand something, or if you get lost. You can also confirm your interpretation by expressing the details in your own words until the supervisor says “exactly’. You don’t want to find something you did wrong at the end and have to say ‘sorry’ and start all over again. Therefore, asking for clarification not only shows your serious attitude to the task, but also improves your work efficiency and establishes the groundwork for productive communication.

3. Get regular feedback
As a newcomer to the Canadian work environment, I think asking your supervisors how they think you are doing is a great way to help you improve. Talk to your supervisor regularly and review your work together. It is important to challenge yourself like this. I believe this will definitely help you perform better in your future work.

At the end, I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who helped and trusted me. I hope these suggestions can help and encourage you to step forward and start your own Canadian work experience with confidence, and find your own valuable and memorable experience in such a beautiful country!

Bringing out the Red Pen

As I begin my journey into becoming a Peer Advisor for the upcoming school year, I can say that I am most excited for one thing: editing. I think I was born with a red pen in my hand; I remember peer editing in elementary school, no one else enjoyed the experience, but I would have a stack of my classmates’ papers in front of me, thrilled to dig in to each one with my red pen, doing the best I could to correct and improve.

Of course, I can say my editing skills have increased since then, now I can do more than just fix a “there” for a “they’re”, or turn a comma into a semi-colon. However, I still have a long way to go. I am looking forward to working on my editing skills as a Peer Advisor, taking what I have learned so far through the Career Centre events and my mock assignments, and putting it to good use helping others tweak their resumes and cover letters so they stand out in the best way possible.

With each resume and cover letter I help edit, I will learn something new, something I can file away for the next paper that comes into my hands. I will continue to build on my skills, not only so I can excel as an advisor, or as a student, but also as an employer down the road in my career … because I know that wherever I end up, there will certainly be a red pen sitting in a drawer in my office!

By: Emma Duca, Peer Advisor

It’s Never Too Early to Start

Every year I visit my mom’s side of the family in the states. With most of my relatives pursuing or having already pursued higher education, the topic of school comes up and gets discussed often. “What are you studying? What can you do in that field? Which careers are you thinking of pursuing?” You probably get those questions all the time too.

After finishing first year and getting acquainted with the Career Centre, it felt good that I could finally answer those last two questions beyond a shrug and a shake of the head. Exploring the opportunities opened up by your studies is important not just so you can answer Aunt Betty a little more in depth when she asks what you’re doing, but so you can think and plan ahead about your future and what you want it to hold.

Students often leave career planning to their final year, sometimes due to feeling that career planning is just too daunting a task. However, simply learning information about the career planning process can really lessen the stress and turn career planning into a journey instead of a chore.

Not sure where to start? We’re here to help! At the Career Centre, you’ll find various workshops, services, and resources that won’t take up a lot of your time but will answer your questions. This fall, think about starting (or completing) the 5 core workshops that make up the Career Development Certificate: http://navigator.wlu.ca/content/documents/Link/career%20new%20website/Career%20Development%20Certificate%20June%202013.pdf

Halfway through your program or in your graduating year? It’s not too late! The information from these workshops will still benefit you and will be useful for the rest of your life. And if you’re in first year, remember: it’s never too early to start!

By: Jessica Amaro, Peer Advisor

Put Your Best Tweet Forward

Everyone knows that when applying for a job, first impressions are important. We often dress nicely, act politely and put our best foot forward during interviews because we want to leave a positive and lasting impression with our potential employers. But what if a first impression was already made of you before you even walked through the building doors? Before you even had a chance to introduce yourself? This has become a common reality for those who choose to have a social presence online. Social media has become a useful tool for employers to distinguish the suitable candidates from the unsuitable as words on a resume only say so much. In a recent interview, I was [half] surprised to hear that my employer had looked me up on Twitter –which was foolishly not private–‐ prior to selecting me for an interview. While I may have tweeted a few things that were NSFW, I was fortunate enough to redeem myself in person and to my surprise, I landed the job. The interviewer was kind enough to share some insight from an employer’s perspective and now I am passing this information onto you. He had said that the way you conduct yourself online creates a first impression for people that otherwise do not know you. The key is to think about your audience before tweeting that wisecrack joke or uploading that binge–‐drinking photo. Is it something a potential employer would find appropriate or entertaining? If not, you might want to reconsider. Social media can be either a blessing or a curse depending on the way you choose to use it. It has the potential to help you land an interview, as well as the potential to sabotage any chance you once had. Just be sure to always put your best foot forward, whether online or in person, because you never know when your first impression will occur.

Shelby Weber, Peer Advisor

2013 Peer Advisor Here I Come!

Ever since the first day I stepped foot on the Laurier campus, I knew this was the place I wanted to be for my university experience. During frosh week, I was amazed at how many different groups and organizations existed at Laurier. All of these peoples and clubs enhanced the Laurier community in their own special way. I couldn’t wait to find the place where I would (hopefully) leave my mark!

I will admit that it took me some time to come out of my shell and to really put myself out there, not knowing what the response would be. I think we all struggle when it comes to taking chances because we are never sure if it will be worth it or if it will just end in disaster.

But something just felt right about the Peer Advisor position. I knew that if I got the chance, I would really enjoy helping other students. The Career Development Centre has so much to offer students and alumni, and it is right at their fingertips. I know that one of my roles as a Peer Advisor will be promoter, and I can’t wait to start making people aware of all the different resources available to them. I know that when I really started exploring the website, I was amazed at how many resources there were. Suddenly, thinking about my career path isn’t so scary! I hope that other students will be able to enjoy these same feelings of relief as I have.

Finally, I hope that my role as a Peer Advisor will not feel like “work” but rather it will be enjoyable because I will constantly be meeting people and gaining experience for a future career in Communications. I am so glad that I took a chance at something I believed in.

Resi Walt, Peer Advisor