Skilled Migrants’ Involuntary Career Change: The role of Alternative Careers in Migrants’ Integration

While Canada welcomes many skilled migrants into our economy, some newcomers experience labour market challenges, and are pushed towards alternative career options. Thus, they decide to change their desired occupations or pursue new career paths in Canada. As a result, the purpose of this research is to gather information and learn more about skilled migrants’ lived experiences of an involuntary career change in Canada and its impact on newcomer integration. We plan to investigate a group of skilled migrants who were forced to change their original careers permanently due to local career barriers in Canada and are currently employed in an alternative career path. We explore their experiences of this transition, often accompanied by working in a lower-status position. The findings of this study will assist migrants coping with alternative careers and life-changing transitions, employers seeking to hire into alternative careers, and organizations assisting migrants in choosing new careers.

Faculty Supervisor:

Jelena Zikic

Student:

Partner:

JVS Toronto

Discipline:

Business

Sector:

Health and Related Sciences & Technology

University:

York University

Program: