Daniel knew very little about Canada before he moved here for love. He’d heard it was a notoriously cold country and that it was the home of CN Tower and Niagara Falls. But prior to meeting his Canadian girlfriend in his hometown in Spain, he never imagined he would have any reason to move to this foreign land.
“I saw an opportunity, I met a girl and for me it was a big deal to come to Canada,” he said. “She invited me to come to her country and I saw it as a big jump, to come to know the country and the culture.”
At first he saw it as an adventure. He left his job as a mining engineer behind, along with his friends and family, and made the jump. After a three-month visit, Daniel decided to stay with his girlfriend in Canada. He soon realized his limited English would be a bigger challenge than he expected.
“Everything was a slow process,” he said. “And at the same time, the relationship with the girl didn’t work out.”
Despite ending things with his girlfriend, Daniel soldiered on in Vancouver. He wasn’t prepared to give up and spent two years applying for permanent residency. In that time, he went for job interviews for position in his field, with hopes that a company would sponsor him. But he was too junior, and his limited English was a barrier. No one wanted to take a chance. Daniel was starting to feel defeated. After his papers came in, Daniel found a job in landscaping, and though it wasn’t his chosen field, he was happy for the work. But he was still determined to find something in mining engineering. He wanted to make the most of his life in his new country.
Daniel found an employment skills program that helped spruce up his resume and put him touch with the employment services section at JFSA. Suddenly, everything started to change. He was set up with a caseworker, who found him a job in his field in a matter of weeks.
“I was able to build my professional career thanks to them,” he said. “When I got the call that I start next week, I was so happy, I was so emotional.”
Daniel credits the JFSA for helping start a career overseas, which at times felt like it would be impossible. He attributes them for helping turn everything around.
“I kept pushing but it wasn’t very positive thanks to the economic crisis,” he said. “But JFSA was the push that I was looking for.”
To hear Dan's story, click here.
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