Canada 2010-2011?

bonkers

in my experience the people you contacted tentatively by email or phone ended up trying to help you out more..

the way i did it was to contact these people while in my old job in ireland - i called them to get them to help me in what i was doing in my old role.. this was a rouse in order to make contacts in canada... i did this for a while.

also i searched and searched for irish names/people in my field over here.. i found a few who owned companies and got my job thru one guy who i just emailed last year and met since..

you'll be amazed by how many irish own big business here.. be sure to ask all your friends and parents friends if they know any irish people here.. it works every time.

on your resume
keep it brief.. two pages max... start it with a selling point paragraph.. your best attributes in bullet point style..
delete experience which is not immediately relevant for the job u are applying for
dont put may2004-dec 2005 - put down 2004-2006 - they allow that here.. you dont have to be too specific.

remember.. you are entering a city where the irish community is strong and the one thing i have been most impressed with is the help you get from the irish here, everyone asking you if you are liking it and need work.. they might not have any right then and there but they will..

also start a job asap - outside your industry if needs be.. few friends worked in retail etc.. but it gets you immersed in the city sooner.. rather than being at home skyping home.. get out earn little but get to know people who aint irish..

feel free to disagree with me as although im here.. its only one person opinion..

Kod-box

What part are you living in Bonkers?

jimmypitt

bonkers wrote: »

in my experience the people you contacted tentatively by email or phone ended up trying to help you out more..

the way i did it was to contact these people while in my old job in ireland - i called them to get them to help me in what i was doing in my old role.. this was a rouse in order to make contacts in canada... i did this for a while.

also i searched and searched for irish names/people in my field over here.. i found a few who owned companies and got my job thru one guy who i just emailed last year and met since..

you'll be amazed by how many irish own big business here.. be sure to ask all your friends and parents friends if they know any irish people here.. it works every time.

on your resume
keep it brief.. two pages max... start it with a selling point paragraph.. your best attributes in bullet point style..
delete experience which is not immediately relevant for the job u are applying for
dont put may2004-dec 2005 - put down 2004-2006 - they allow that here.. you dont have to be too specific.

remember.. you are entering a city where the irish community is strong and the one thing i have been most impressed with is the help you get from the irish here, everyone asking you if you are liking it and need work.. they might not have any right then and there but they will..

also start a job asap - outside your industry if needs be.. few friends worked in retail etc.. but it gets you immersed in the city sooner.. rather than being at home skyping home.. get out earn little but get to know people who aint irish..

feel free to disagree with me as although im here.. its only one person opinion..

I fully agree! Challenging but has to be done....

gottcha_goin

Has anyone secured a place in Toronto yet and how much rent will you be paying??

Kod-box

Can you definatley book your own flights one-way?

Ive been told they dont allow it at USIT now?

And if ya do surely ya only have to pay €409 because the extra hundred is for their flights.

jimmypitt

Kod-box wrote: »

Can you definatley book your own flights one-way?

Ive been told they dont allow it at USIT now?

And if ya do surely ya only have to pay €409 because the extra hundred is for their flights.

I booked a one way flight, USIT cleared it only a week ago. I now have Visa

Kod-box

sweet, gonna do the same so, how much did ya pay for the one-way out of interest?

experiMental

bonkers wrote: »

also start a job asap - outside your industry if needs be.. few friends worked in retail etc.. but it gets you immersed in the city sooner.. rather than being at home skyping home.. get out earn little but get to know people who aint irish..

The question is, how did those people that came in from Ireland get retail jobs when there was competition for them from the natives, who get higher priority in Canada?

I've been looking for jobs in my area online but the entry level ones that I want were relocated to Eastern Europe recently.

There are a lot of job adverts on Craigslist, but can I trust this site? Are those real jobs?

Anyhoo, I'm moving off to Vancouver on 7th of June, I might see some of you there.

bonkers

craigslist is a great place for jobs.. i got my first one there.. but ring up.. an irish accent wins a lot of favour.. i googled the guys name on the ad and rang him.. insisted that i wasnt above the entry level job that was on offer and got the job on the phone..

im in the process of setting up a website for irish people coming here.. visa info, tips on where to live, where to find work etc..

let me know if you'd be interested in this type of website

thanks

dRNk SAnTA

Hi guys, I was in Vancouver nearly 3 years ago and had a great time. In my experience Craigslist is the main place to look. I ended up getting 2 jobs and 2 places to stay via there.

For those staying in Vancouver this is what I would recommend:

Kitsilano is a great place to live, there are good bus routes going downtown. It's pretty and it's close to the beach.

When i went in 2007 I attended the USIT briefing thing when I arrived, and they offered to set us up with a mobile phone then and there. We were assured by the lady that we were getting the best deal (we paid something like 80 dollars) but that ended up not being true. I would recommend going into a phone shop yourself.

We ended up opening bank accounts with Canada Trust. I don't think it really matters which one you choose, but Canada Trust was grand for us.

If you're hitting the clubs, you usually need to be there earlier than you would in Ireland. Big queues form, and I've often seen bouncers creating big queues while the inside remains empty - this (imo) is because they want bribes from people to skip the (artificial) queue. If you don't get there early you could be waiting for a good while.

If you're going to the cinema, especially for a new popular movie, get there early! Candians are ridiculous for grabbing their seats up to an hour before the movie is supposed to start. Not knowing this led to me sitting about 5 rows from the front during Transformers!

It's worth buying a weekly (I think?) transport pass, their transport system is good and you'll probably use it a lot.

Get the Safeway loyalty card, there are often seperate prices for people with the card, and you can save loads on the basics like toilet paper!

Thats really all I can think of just now, good luck to you all, and have a great time! You'll love it.

(p.s. if you're still trying to decide I would definitely recommend Vancouver > Toronto. I've been to both places)

r1317

Living in Vancouver since last July, Great city, plenty of jobs weather is savage in the Summer, nightlife isn't great but you kind of get used to that (even if you're someone that never thought you would). Any questions from anyone coming over let me know and I'll answer them best I can

r1317

dRNk SAnTA wrote: »

Hi guys, I was in Vancouver nearly 3 years ago and had a great time. In my experience Craigslist is the main place to look. I ended up getting 2 jobs and 2 places to stay via there.

For those staying in Vancouver this is what I would recommend:

Kitsilano is a great place to live, there are good bus routes going downtown. It's pretty and it's close to the beach.

When i went in 2007 I attended the USIT briefing thing when I arrived, and they offered to set us up with a mobile phone then and there. We were assured by the lady that we were getting the best deal (we paid something like 80 dollars) but that ended up not being true. I would recommend going into a phone shop yourself.

We ended up opening bank accounts with Canada Trust. I don't think it really matters which one you choose, but Canada Trust was grand for us.

If you're hitting the clubs, you usually need to be there earlier than you would in Ireland. Big queues form, and I've often seen bouncers creating big queues while the inside remains empty - this (imo) is because they want bribes from people to skip the (artificial) queue. If you don't get there early you could be waiting for a good while.

If you're going to the cinema, especially for a new popular movie, get there early! Candians are ridiculous for grabbing their seats up to an hour before the movie is supposed to start. Not knowing this led to me sitting about 5 rows from the front during Transformers!

It's worth buying a weekly (I think?) transport pass, their transport system is good and you'll probably use it a lot.

Get the Safeway loyalty card, there are often seperate prices for people with the card, and you can save loads on the basics like toilet paper!

Thats really all I can think of just now, good luck to you all, and have a great time! You'll love it.

(p.s. if you're still trying to decide I would definitely recommend Vancouver > Toronto. I've been to both places)

Good post all accurate information although you can get nicer places for the same price (in another nice area) around South Granville/Downtown, We lived in Kits first just moved as its expensive and a tiny bit qiet although still a great place to live

jimmypitt

r1317 wrote: »

Living in Vancouver since last July. Great city to live in, plenty of money to be made weather is rainy in winter beautiful in Summer, Nightlife isn't great ( you sort of get used to this after a while). If anyone has a question about the city let me know and I'll answer as best I can.

I don't believe you!! Oh man i hope you are right. Being in Ireland tis hard to believe this is true. I just wanted to say reading that post has given me a boost - i am saturated from the recession here and tis great to read something positive.

r1317

jimmypitt wrote: »

Could you elaborate on this a bit? Send in your resume in to companies at random? I hate to be negative but why would a company in Canada care about a bloke/lady coming over to Canada on a WHV? Unless of course they have an unreal resume? Was there any particular website you used to convert CV to resume if ya follow? Was hoping to get it professionally done but i doubt anyone in Ireland does that.

Cheers.

Just hardly mention your work visa. they wont look too much into it. Tell them it's an initial year then you can extend it (which techically you can't but there is ways to do it) plenty of good well paid jobs available in Van.

r1317

jimmypitt wrote: »

I don't believe you!! Oh man i hope you are right. Being in Ireland tis hard to believe this is true. I just wanted to say reading that post has given me a boost - i am saturated from the recession here and tis great to read something positive.

People tell you all sorts, I came over myself and four other people (noone overly qualified) we are all working, all living in nice places if your tecnical the tech industry is booming (sales jobs). My only fear is being able to stay) Honestly before I came when we were deciding where to go I looked at the unemployment heer etc... There is very little sign of a recession in Vancouver! Put in a little bit of work interview a bit and you'll be grand

jimmypitt

r1317 wrote: »

People tell you all sorts, I came over myself and four other people (noone overly qualified) we are all working, all living in nice places if your tecnical the tech industry is booming (sales jobs). My only fear is being able to stay) Honestly before I came when we were deciding where to go I looked at the unemployment heer etc... There is very little sign of a recession in Vancouver! Put in a little bit of work interview a bit and you'll be grand

I will believe it when i see it! Tis hard to believe the whole world is not going to collapse when living in Ireland.

r1317

jimmypitt wrote: »

I will believe it when i see it! Tis hard to believe the whole world is not going to collapse when living in Ireland.

Well you won't get far with that thinking! Once you think positive and aim realistically you will be fine

Limerick_Lass

I paid for my visa today.. be careful folks USIT try to make you pay EUR509 now to put a hundred towards your flight but dont agree!!

I cant believe I am going... after being placed 612 at the end of January on the waiting list I hadnt much hope but here I am WHOHOOOOO

Now must get researching and saving!... Thinking Vancouver in June/July :cool:

InTheTrees

Best of Luck. Craigslist is a good place to start:

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/

jasonf

hey everyone!
Hopefully someone can help me out with this one, ive been on the net a while now and i still didnt find what im looking for.
Anyhow, im a carpenter going to canada in june, first place we go is vancouver and just wondering do i need to do exams for anything like that to be able to work , Carpentry is a regulated job in vancouver ,
It would be good to hear from people that have looked into this or have gone threw the process. maybe because ill only be there for the year it may not be needed to do any exams or to have a licence.??

thanks all

JohnMearsheimer

Do you have to tip in Canada? Whats the normal amount if you do?

colin29

jasonf wrote: »

hey everyone!
Hopefully someone can help me out with this one, ive been on the net a while now and i still didnt find what im looking for.
Anyhow, im a carpenter going to canada in june, first place we go is vancouver and just wondering do i need to do exams for anything like that to be able to work , Carpentry is a regulated job in vancouver ,
It would be good to hear from people that have looked into this or have gone threw the process. maybe because ill only be there for the year it may not be needed to do any exams or to have a licence.??

thanks all

You'll probably be fine but you may not get the wage a red seal carpenter would get but it'll be a grand wage anyway, also you might only get a job as a carpenters helper. Quite often you'll need your own transport and you will need your own tools.

Chet Zar

Hey John,

It's definitely customary and it's 15% so you'll prob need to watch out for that when it comes to paying the bill! Pretty much the same as the States it seems.

citytillidie

Woohoo Status changed now to Work Authorisation has been printed. So just a waiting game now for me. Off at the end of July.

swabby

Anyone have any details on what exactly you need for the garda vetting form, i was told you need to list all previous addresses? would that include where you lived while in college? Also anyone know how long it takes for the garda vetting form to be processed? thanks

JohnMearsheimer

swabby wrote: »

Anyone have any details on what exactly you need for the garda vetting form, i was told you need to list all previous addresses? would that include where you lived while in college? Also anyone know how long it takes for the garda vetting form to be processed? thanks

The guards will give you a form to fill in at the public counter when you go to your local garda station. I brought my birth cert, drivers licence and a utility bill to prove my current address when I did it. You also have to bring a stamped addressed envelope with you, a normal size one will do.

You have to include every address you have lived at while living in Ireland, including college ones. Mine took 6 days but from what I've read on Boards it could take a few weeks to get too. It all depends on how quickly your local gardai deal with it.

Forgot to say you have to put rough dates down too for every address you lived at.

swabby

hopefully it doesnt take too long so, thanks

crushproof

Mine took over 3 weeks....the first one I filled in got lost in Harcourt street, disaster! Was freaking that I wouldn't get the second one in time for the 40 day deadline but lukcily the Guards in my local station were great about it and managed to get it fast tracked so got it in 2 days!
Sent in application this week so hoping to get the visa by the end of May.
Gonna be looking for a simple enough job in retail for starters, ideally I'd love a job in a moutain / sea resort kinda place for the summer. But all depends on when I get over I guess, Vancouver / Calgary look the most likely places, Toronto is tempting because it's much cheaper to fly to but seem to be far more oppourtunites in west Canada!

JohnMearsheimer

I'm heading out west too to Calgary. Everyone seems to be going to either Toronto or Vancouver. Anyone else not going to T or V?

inode

i just got my status changed too to work authorisation document issued. usit also sent me an email informing me of this, they say if i havent booked my flights yet i must ring them ASAP to give them the details, only problem is i havent decided on what date im going to book my flights, im hoping august but if i cant afford it by then i will leave it till a while later.

is there a deadline to book my flights?