What Employers Want: Strong Language Skills

Friday, January 30, 2009

What Employers Want: Strong Language Skills

There are many benefits to developing the language skills you already posses. These skills are often taken for granted once one comes to the point of fluency in a language, either as a child or an adult language learner. However, the ability to use a language is not the same as the ability to use it effectively and everyone can stand to improve.

Improper grammar and disorganized thoughts can cause the meaning of your writing and speaking to be lost. This can reduce your chance of obtaining an internship or reflect badly on you if you do land a position. Since no intern wants to make an unprofessional impression, we’ve compiled some hints and tips to improve your language skills.

1. Pay attention to proper form – Sentences and paragraphs are necessary to make text easily readable. These structures allow you to organize your thoughts and present them in a logical manner. Some people ignore the importance of these structures and submit cover letters that are one long block of text. These cover letters are usually ignored by employers. Templates for cover letters and business emails can be found easily online: remember to copy only the format and make all the information your own.

2. Do not use slang in professional writing - An individual who writes well comes across as a competent professional. This is equally true if you are writing an important report or a simple email. A well worded email to a colleague may get a prompt reply, while a poorly worded email may be misunderstood. You may use slang and informal writing to communicate to your friends but these things should never be used at work. Similarly, professional emails should not include happy faces or other emoticons.

3. Think before you speak – We’ve all heard this one before, and that’s because it’s true. If you are asked for your opinion in a meeting with colleagues and you present your thoughts in a well-thought manner, they will likely be impressed. If you ramble and begin to veer off topic they may not be convinced you’ve thought about the topic at all. You don’t need to plan what you will say word for word but a little bit of preparation can go a long way. Always keep up-to-date on work topics and take a moment to collect your thoughts before you speak.

4. Use dictionaries, thesauruses and writing guide books – Often we use these books while we are students and then let them collect dust. Their usefulness does not end with your studies. Keep an online thesaurus and dictionary bookmarked on your computer. When you are writing something and stumped for the correct word to use, it will only take a few seconds to check.

5. Develop your presentation skills – Many people can speak very well but become nervous during meetings, presentations or job interviews. Public speaking skills can be developed with practice. One option is Toastmasters, a low cost organization that will help you develop your ability to write and deliver speeches. You may not need to deliver speeches now but one day your boss could ask you to deliver a presentation, and if you’ve already developed your public speaking skills you’ll be able to impress your audience.

And finally, for current interns:

Ask your coach or mentor for help – All Career Edge Organization interns are assigned a coach within their host employer. If you are unsure of how to improve your language skills, or what areas need improving, ask your coach or mentor for their advice. A coach or mentor can provide a professional perspective, help you diagnose development areas and provide you with valuable resources and opportunities that will allow you to practice and hone your language skills.

Career Edge Organization

144 Front St. West

Toronto, ON

M5J 2L7

Study: Immigrants who leave Canada

The Daily, Wed, March 1, 2006

1980 to 2000

Migration to Canada for some immigrants is not a permanent move, according to a new study, which shows that many newcomers subsequently leave Canada. Among young males, those admitted to the country under the business and skilled worker classes were most likely to leave.

The study addresses the behaviour of men who were 25 to 45 years of age at the time they arrived in Canada. The analysis shows that their future profile in Canada is strongly influenced by a variety of measurable factors, such as their country of origin and their economic qualifications

A substantial part of migration to Canada is not necessarily permanent, with about a third of male immigrants (aged 25 to 45 at the time of landing) experiencing out-migration within 20 years after arrival. More than half of those who leave do so within the first year of arrival.

In addition, the business cycle had a strong impact. For example, the groups who arrived when the economy was relatively weak during the recession of 1990/91 had higher departure rates.

Profiles of residence in Canada, as indicated by income tax return filing behaviour, varied across source countries and immigrant classes. Emigration rates were especially high for source countries such as the United States and Hong Kong, and for those admitted under the skilled worker or business classes.

Significant proportion of working age immigrants leave

Most out-migration appears longer term, but there is a temporary component, as some immigrants seem to arrive, leave, and then return again to Canada.

Among male immigrants 25 to 45 years of age who landed in 1981, about one-third are inferred from their tax filing behaviour to have left the country within the first 20 years after arrival. Similar rates are also obtained from Census-based information.

Note to readers This paper analyzes factors that determine how long immigrants remain in Canada in their first spell in the country, and what happens thereafter. The paper focuses on males who were aged 25 to 45 at the time of arrival in Canada. The data set that forms the primary basis of this study is the Longitudinal Immigration Data Base, which provides information on all immigrants admitted in Canada since 1980. Whether an immigrant has left the country or not is inferred from the tax filing behaviour. Individuals are considered to have left if their tax behaviour follows one of two patterns. In the first case, the individual never files a tax return within the first five years of arrival. In the second case, the individual files a tax return within the first five years of arrival, but goes on to become a non-filer for four or more consecutive years. These two types of absences from tax files are used to infer absence from the country. The rate of absences from the country derived from tax filing behaviour is also verified through an analysis of Census information.

Similar rates of out-migration have also been reported for the United States.

Their absence from the Canada was not necessarily permanent, however. About one in ten leavers return to Canada within 10 years of first arriving.

Many immigrants leave within the first year of arrival

About 6 out of 10 of those who leave do so within the first year of arrival. This suggests that a large fraction of immigrants who leave choose to do so within a relatively short period of time after arrival.

Accounting for other factors, the departure rates were higher for those landing during business cycle downturns.

The highest out-migration rates occurred among the group that arrived in 1980 at the onset of a business cycle downturn, and those who arrived around the 1990 recession. The groups with the lowest out-migration rates were those who arrived in 1986 and 1993, periods of much more favourable labour market conditions.

Immigrants who arrived in 1990, for example, were about 50% more likely to leave than those who arrived in 1986.

Out-migration rates vary with country of origin, class of immigrant

The study found evidence that younger working age male immigrants admitted from different regions and under different classes had very different profiles of residence in Canada.

Canada's immigration system admits individuals on the basis of family ties, a refugee process, or through a points system that applies to a variety of immigrant classes, each with their own criteria for admission (business class, skilled worker class, and assisted relative class). The out-migration rate varies across these classes.

Controlling for possible differences in age, language, education, marital status, and year of arrival, the study found higher emigration rates among immigrants who were admitted in the business and skilled worker classes. About 4 in 10 of the newcomers who arrived in either of these classes left within 10 years after arrival.

Those in the assisted relative class had a lower departure rate (around 3 in 10).

Refugee claimants had the lowest out-migration rates (about 2 in 10).

Previous studies of newcomers in the United States showed strong differences by source country. This is also apparent for Canada, even after taking other important variables into consideration. Newcomers from the United States and those from Hong Kong had the highest likelihood of leaving Canada, with about half of them leaving within 10 years after arrival, as indicated by their tax filing behaviour. Newcomers from Europe or the Caribbean, in contrast, were about half as likely to leave.

From: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/060301/dq060301b-eng.htm

Newcomers experiences in Canada….

Please read these histories at http://www.thestar.com/newworkers and help us to give a successfully future to the newcomers in Canada. Let us help Canada be a better place for the future generations.

LinkedIn

The purpose of the site is to allow registered users to maintain a list of contact details of people they know and trust in business. The people in the list are called Connections. Users can invite anyone (whether a site user or not) to become a connection.

This list of connections can then be used in a number of ways:

• A contact network is built up consisting of their direct connections, the connections of each of their connections (termed second-degree connections) and also the connections of second-degree connections (termed third-degree connections). This can be used to gain an introduction to someone you wish to know through a mutual, trusted contact.
• It can then be used to find jobs, people and business opportunities recommended by someone in one's contact network.
• Employers can list jobs and search for potential candidates.
• Job seekers can review the profile of hiring managers and discover which of their existing contacts can introduce them.

The "gated-access approach" (where contact with any professional requires either a preexisting relationship, or the intervention of a contact of theirs) is intended to build trust among the service's users. LinkedIn participates in EU's International Safe Harbor Privacy Principles.^[7]

The feature LinkedIn Answers,^[8] similar to Google Answers ^[9] or Yahoo! Answers, allows users to ask questions for the community to answer. This feature is free and the main differences from the latter two services are that questions are potentially more business-oriented, and the identity of the people asking and answering questions is known.

The searchable LinkedIn Groups,^[10] feature allows users to establish new business relationships by joining alumni, industry, or professional and other relevant groups. LinkedIn groups can be created in any subjects and by any member of LinkedIn. Some groups are specialized groups dealing with a narrow domain or industry whereas others are very broad and generic in nature.

From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LinkedIn

Career Bridge Internships for Internationally Qualified Professionals

The Career Bridge paid internship program is operated by Career Edge Organization, a national not-for-profit that works with employers across Canada and has provided more than 9,200 paid internships since 1996. Career Edge Organization operates three innovative paid internship programs: Career Edge for recent or new graduates, Ability Edge for graduates with disabilities and Career Bridge for internationally qualified professionals.

The Career Bridge paid internship program was developed in response to Canada’s labour and skills market demand for internationally qualified professionals and to the aspirations of qualified immigrants eager to work in their professional fields in Canada.

It is an innovative paid internship program designed to address the dilemma of "no Canadian experience, no job; no job, no Canadian experience." The full program launched in spring of 2004 and since that time has provided more than 1,000 internationally qualified professionals with meaningful mid-level work experiences to help launch their careers in Canada. The internships last for 4, 6, 9 or 12 months for internationally qualified professionals ready to launch their careers in Canada.

The Career Bridge program is a low-risk, cost effective way for Canadian organizations to find educated and experienced talent across many different industry sectors, adding skills and diversity to their workforce and helping highly qualified and motivated individuals get meaningful work experience in Canada. Interns gain meaningful work experience with on the job coaching and mentoring in a supportive and professional business environment.

For Internationally Qualified Professionals
To learn how to qualify for the Career Bridge paid internship program and to apply for program registration, please click here.

from: http://www.careerbridge.ca/