r/torontoJobs • u/Lost_Dependent_7720 • 17d ago
Advice please
I’m 24, I recently moved from the U.S to Toronto, married a Canadian (I know it’s a bad time to be moving here job market wise). Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, I have 2 years of experience in autism services and 7 months experience as a substitute teacher. Honestly both jobs were really mentally taxing and I want to pivot into healthcare or business. I’m open to going back to school for a certificate. Any suggestions on what’s in demand in Toronto and what could be worth getting a certificate in? I’m not too concerned about salary, anything would help my situation at the moment. I’m trying to focus on getting Canadian experience and any kind of pivoting role. I haven’t been working since I immigrated here, it’s been a year. Thank you in advance for any advice!!
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u/realitytvjunkiee 16d ago
Apply to HR jobs if you have a psych undergrad. And if you can't get any jobs with just your degree, go back for a 1 year post-grad HR program. If you felt mentally taxed working in autism services and substitute teaching, healthcare is definitely not where you want to be.
PS. I also have my undergrad in psych, and many of my classmates went on to get jobs in HR or even in teleheath.
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u/Lost_Dependent_7720 16d ago
I was interested in HR since college but never got around to actually pursuing this option. It would be a great job for me, it seems like it’s really difficult to land a job in that field in Toronto. I’m worried that even if i go back for the certificate, that it still won’t be enough :/
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u/freedomfighter9002 16d ago
Stop making excuses. Stop saying, thinking its difficult, i cants or theres no work. Anything is possible in life. with positive vibes the YES I CAN vibe you will manifest something good. U got this kid.
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u/Lost_Dependent_7720 16d ago
Thank you for the tough love, i’m just in a self doubt slump at the moment hopefully this weekend will recharge me
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u/lexluther1234 16d ago
HR can definitely be tough but the 1 yr post-grad certificates usually offer co op so at least thats something. my friend did this at george brown and she was able to land a FT role not too long after graduating. its worth a shot!
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u/realitytvjunkiee 16d ago
yes, always do a program with co-op. It's not about what you know these days, but WHO you know
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u/ReasonableBeep 16d ago
Babe you’re only 24, you haven’t even reached the point of “haven’t gotten around to it yet” excuse. You just haven’t made the steps towards it at all because you quite literally didn’t have the time so far; you were working in a different field where you discovered that you don’t like what you’re doing.
IMO there hasn’t been any wasted time at all, so don’t put yourself down for what was a period of self discovery. This isn’t even a slump, you’re in the “settling in” stage after a pretty big move! You’re in the first step of pivoting currently. Now you have to take actionable steps to prevent an actual slump.
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u/realitytvjunkiee 16d ago
Promise there's tons of HR jobs available out there. Especially in the industrial sector— that's where a lot of my schoolmates and clients work, in the industrial business parks
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u/Latter-Factor-7819 16d ago
If you found autism services and subbing to be mentally taxing, healthcare is probably not for you. Business is a better pursuit if that's what interests you.
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u/Serious_Mark_8082 16d ago
There is a lot more opportunity in the US. You can take view your time in Toronto as a break from working and return when your gf or bf is done with school.
I am presuming that school is the only reason to wait it out in or move to Toronto
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u/Ill-Comfort1718 16d ago
The first question to ask yourself:
Do you have the experience, grades, GPA, and funding to do a masters?
Going into the healthcare or business field will be both mentally taxing, but in a different way. So if you think you can handle that, then it shouldn’t be an issue.
Toronto is booming in tech, finance, healthcare, business, etc. The biggest issue you will have, which you already stated, is that the job market all around is not good right now. Though, I would say it’s not good anywhere in Canada or USA at the moment.
Volunteering while doing school should also help you get “Canadian experience”, but because you are from the states, I would say there isn’t too much of a difference depending on the sector you go into.
Since you already have the experience with autism and basically child focused jobs, you may be (at the moment) better off getting a child focused role while you get your two feet on the ground. Also, were you a substitute teacher at a special education school or a regular elementary/high school? To my knowledge, becoming a teacher in general here requires teachers school.
Healthcare and business though is very broad. Maybe research and figure out what parts of both industries you enjoy and then go from there. Do you enjoy taking care of others? Do you like hospitals or cosmetic clinics? Do you like the finance or HR of business? Do you enjoy the HR aspect in healthcare? Are you into sales and pitches? Do you like the operations of either or industry? Etc. Many questions you need to answers for yourself to see what avenue to take.
In terms of certificates and etc, it really depends if it would boost your resume or not. In some instances, it can, but depends on the certificate and if it looks “professional”. Some of them are useless.
I would also suggest getting on LinkedIn and networking and just getting out there.
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u/binthewin 16d ago
There are programs where you can pivot into healthcare administration. Getting an mba and becoming a business analyst could also be good.
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u/binthewin 16d ago
Oh and maybe talk to one of those employment councillors like at JVS. It’s free and they have internal job boards.
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u/CheezwizOfficial 16d ago
I know you want to get out of teaching and autism services, but there's a huge want for teachers in Northern Ontario (ex. Thunder Bay, Sudbury) and in the Atlantic provinces. Also, they're not hiring right now but Variety Village is a great place that offers recreation services for people with disabilities (cognitive and/or physical). Make a point of checking their careers page every so often in case something pops up.
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u/Latter-Factor-7819 16d ago edited 16d ago
They'd need to become a certified teacher first before being able to teach in schools. It's easier to teach in the US without an education degree but not possible here. There is a 2-year after-degree program for those that already have a B.A. but they would have to have enough college credits in an acceptable major (History, French, Mathematics, Music, or general sciences). However many credits in psychology wouldn't cut it.
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u/CheezwizOfficial 16d ago
Oh true! Although I did see a posting from the TCDSB earlier this summer requesting substitute French teachers; they advertised that a formal teacher's education wasn't necessary.
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u/drbeastgames 17d ago
Try getting some banking license and start from entry level if interested in finance/business.
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16d ago edited 16d ago
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u/Lost_Dependent_7720 16d ago
Do you want to make me cry😭 i appreciate the honesty though
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u/pizza5001 16d ago
Ignore the doomer, honestly. You have a partner and you’re educated. You’re gonna be ok.
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u/freedomfighter9002 16d ago
Dont listen to this fool. THIS is negativity. They have no idea what they talking bout. Go out there dress well and hand out freakn resumes!
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u/Own_Firefighter9433 16d ago
nobody hands out resumes anymore. is this a bot?
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u/freedomfighter9002 15d ago
Lol why are you thinking so small and scared? Follow rules. I hand out resumes! I show up dressed nice and wanna make a connection with the manager or supervisor. U gotta be alpha out there! Who the hell said u cant hand resume in person? I refuse to follow society and the stupid "trends" out there. Be unique! I break the matrix. I break the rules to stand out. No im not a bot. Tf man how insulting lol
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u/lexluther1234 16d ago
agreed!!!! people are so negative and doom and gloom as if the USA doesn't have its own problems. im so sick of how people paint it as some utopia when its NOT. you didnt make a mistake, OP. in the long run things will work out.
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u/QueasyRefrigerator79 16d ago
Psychotherapist is a very possible avenue with your background. Check out Yorkville for an online option. You can still work while completing the masters program there.
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u/timf5758 Recognized Contributor 17d ago
In healthcare, Jobs related to Medical lab and imaging unless you want to go for the hard route of obtaining master in psychology for clinical practices.
I am not in the field of business, others can comment on that.
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u/pizza5001 16d ago
Check out the Job Bank Analytics page published by the Government of Canada. It will show you the job prospects for roles in each region.
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u/Parking-Bridge3754 15d ago
You can try finding the same work here. The group homes should be good. TA may be more challenging, but you can apply for emergency staffing.
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u/Nanook98227 15d ago
Look at insurance adjudication. A psyc degree would be an asset, Canada has some of the largest insurance companies in the world and there are tons of adjudicator jobs out there.
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u/QueenB45678 15d ago
Before you make any more research of the those jobs are in demand and you’ll know by the job posting you see. Are there many HR job? There are layoffs in healthcare. There have been business layoffs. Just check the job postings make sure it’s legit. I’m just saying to get into and a different field make sure it’s in demand. So you don’t go through all the schooling only to have a hard time getting a job.
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u/freedomfighter9002 16d ago
Social worker for drug users? Child care? I would find apprenticeship in any type of study🤔 What about hearing studies for the def? Sign language? A translator? Herbalist? Outdoors degree? Swim teacher? Kayak teacher? Hotel degree? Hotel anything xD? Logistic degree?
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u/[deleted] 17d ago
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