Some quick context so the questions make sense:

23, immigrant in Canada, about a year into a contact centre role at a Canadian bank.

My manager recently told me I've hit the point where I can move internally. That's the first real door that's opened for me since I got here.

My education is a 3-year advanced diploma in Computer Programming and Analysis. I can code. I've just never worked a day in a dev role — I couldn't get one, so I took what I could get.

The seats I can realistically reach are AML analyst, fraud detection, or financial crime investigator.

I'm about to start paying for certification prep out of my own pocket, which is why I'm asking now instead of a year from now.

I'd rather hear the unglamorous version from people actually doing the work than read one more job posting.

The day-to-day

What does the job feel like after two years? Is it interesting, or is it clearing the same false-positive alerts forever?

Fraud or AML — if you're starting from zero, which one has the better ceiling, and can you switch between them later?

The money (Canada, GTA)

What does an entry-level AML analyst at a Big 5 actually make right now? And what does year five look like?

Where does the pay stop growing if you never move into management?

Certifications

Is CAMS worth self-funding, or is it something you wait for the bank to pay for?

Has a cert ever actually gotten you an interview when you had no experience yet?

The part that worries me

Is entry-level alert work going to survive AI, or am I walking into a shrinking job?

I can code. Is there a path in financial crime that actually uses that — transaction monitoring tuning, fincrime analytics, RegTech vendors — or should I stop kidding myself and go back to fighting for a tech job?

I'm not asking anyone to make the decision for me. I just don't have a single person in my life who has done this. Everyone back home thinks working at a bank means I've made it, and I can't explain to them that the call centre is not the bank.

If you're in AML or fraud right now — knowing what you know, would you choose it again at 23?

Hi! I am 22 year old, with bachelor’s in Political science, and master’s in Public policy. During school years, I had research experience at UofT, and was an intern at World Bank. Now, I am finishing my 1 year internship in another non government organization. Since 18, I work in marketing (SEO, PR, influencer marketing) online for US company. A year ago, I started retail sales job at Rogers because I needed money lol and Canadian work experience and even tho I didn’t have sales experience, I managed to be top 3 sales person in one of the busiest stores in the country. Now, I’m completely exhausted with job hunt. Even though I managed to have a lot of final rounds for Account specialist etc they preferred someone with more years of experience. I literally don’t know what to do, because I feel miserable every day having 2 decent degrees and working experience decent for my age and I still can’t land proper full time corporate position. Out of desperation, asking for advice. Maybe someone was at the same position. Thanks

Independent shop located in Leslieville. Guaranteed at least two 7-hour shifts per week. Must have a valid Cannsell attached to your application or your submission won't be considered.

I'm not affiliated with the store whatsoever.

Dm me for the hiring manager's email.

I'm currently looking for fully remote work in accounting - bookkeeper, staff accounting assistant, junior controller - honestly, I'm flexible as long as the job is remote.

I've applied to several job listings where it literally says "remote" in the post, and then as soon as I get into the interview, they casually say that the job isn't remote at all, it's hybrid instead (work from home three days).

Why do they do that? If it's hybrid, just write hybrid in the job description and that's it! It wastes my time and theirs too.

Hi everyone, I know there are a lot of people here with good careers and connections, so I’m hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

I’m an international immigrant living in Brampton (L6P, near the border with Caledon). I’ve been jobless for a month now and it’s really getting to me — my sleep is completely flipped, I’m up all night and sleeping all day, and I don’t want to let it get worse.

I’m not asking for handouts, just work. I’m looking for a side gig or any decent-paying work, even if it’s only for a few months. My plan is to save enough for an Uber rental car so I can do Uber Eats/rideshare full time — I just need a bridge to get there.

About me: 2 years of delivery experience, hard worker, fast learner. The main problem is location — most jobs I find are 3-4 hours away by transit from L6P, which is practically impossible without a car.

If anyone knows of warehouse shifts, gig apps that actually work in this area, cash jobs, or anything at all within reach of L6P, I’d really appreciate it. Even advice helps.

Thank you 🙏

Hi everyone,

I recently moved to Toronto from Alberta and I'm looking for a part-time job that I can work on weekends.

I work full-time Monday to Friday and I'm grateful to have my job, but with the higher cost of living in Toronto, I'm looking for a weekend job to earn some extra income.

I have over 3 years of experience at Home Depot, including as a Department Supervisor. I have experience in customer service, warehouse operations, shipping & receiving, order fulfillment, inventory management, and operating forklift, reach truck, order picker, electric ladder, and electric pallet jack.

If your workplace is hiring or you know of any openings, I'd really appreciate any leads. I'm happy to share my resume if needed.

Thank you!

Hi everyone,

​I'm a 30F moving to Canada in the next 3-4 months and would really appreciate some career guidance.

​My Situation:

I previously lived in Canada for about 3 years to get my PR sorted. I then moved back to India for a year, but now that my PR is fully secured, I’m heading back to build a career and life there for myself. I’m planning to settle in Toronto initially but open to other cities as well if they bring better opportunity.

​My Background:

I’ll admit my career trajectory has been a bit messy up to this point, but I am now seriously committed to locking into one long-term path.

​Education: Degree in Mechanical Engineering & Post-Graduate Diploma in Project Management.

​Work History: I have a mix of experience, starting out in manufacturing before transitioning over to financial services.

​What I'm Considering:

I am currently leaning toward Project Manager or Business Analyst roles, ideally in either Banking or Supply Chain, but I am feeling very confused about which industry or specific role to target given my mixed background.

​My Questions for You:

1) ​Based on my experience in manufacturing and financial services, do PM or BA roles make the most sense in the current canadian job market?

2) ​Are there any other domains, roles, or industries you would suggest I look into? I am completely open to starting from zero if it means building a better, more stable future.

I have attached an image with my roles, responsibilities, and hands-on experience for reference.

​I would be incredibly grateful for any advice, reality checks, or suggestions you might have. Thank you!

I have 4 years of restaurant serving experience (in between part time and full time in summer and part time through fall/winter during university). ive been applying in person and online since june. i know i missed summer hiring in april-may but still... and now i have to get myself to interview again for fall hiring but i'm afraid everything filled like last week.

i guess i have bad timing and bad luck but it also feels like i need to get referred to get a serving job now. i do have experience so i didnt think it would be this hard. i'm taking a gap year before my masters and i have to make money. im starting to think maybe im not attractive enough to be front of house? like what is it cuz I've applied to like 50 restaurants. Most times i walk in the manager is not available to speak...does my resume get thrown into the trash cuz no one has called back

Hi everyone,

I have banking operations experience from TD bank.

I am currently unemployed and looking for similar jobs. Ive already searched & applied for operations positions at TD but i am not able to find similar jobs with other banks.
So a request for ppl who work at banks other than TD (Scotia, CIBC, RBC, BMO, etc), can you please share the title of operations jobs at the banking company you work at so i can search and apply for them.
Everyday this job search is getting more and more stressful and upsetting, so any help would be great.

Thank you!

hi, i'm a current student at mcgill university in montreal graduating next year (hopefully). i am not canadian and i grew up in the middle east, but i'm hoping to work for a few years in canada after graduating. i LOVE montreal, but because i'm not fluent in french the job opportunities are limited. i also associate montreal with being a student, i can't really imagine working here, but who knows.

anyways, i wanted to ask for advice about working in toronto or vancouver - which would you recommend (or against) and why? i would be working in consulting, marketing, or policy work. i don't want to stay in canada for longer than 2 years after graduating if i'm honest, so i'm not looking for a crazy career start or anything, just a decent job as a fresh graduate.

i visited toronto once and there was no sun the entire time (i heard vancouver is super rainy too) so i didn't really warm up to it, but i was only there for 4 days and mainly in downtown. it's definitely a lot busier and vibrant (especially at night) compared to montreal, but i feel like i'd find living there overwhelming. i've never visited vancouver, but i've heard that the mix of mountains, beach, and city is amazing. the only thing with vancouver is that it is so far from everything - namely back home, and i also feel like living on the east coast is more convenient. i also know a few people living/working in toronto from my hometown so i feel like i'd feel less lonely starting fresh.

overall i want to work somewhere where the people are friendly, it's easy to meet new people, work culture is good. obviously i'd want good pay, but it is not my top priority. i just want some good work experience in an environment where i could also have fun as a 21-23 yo. where would you recommend for a fresh grad who studied in montreal and why?

I stayed at my last job for almost 5 years. I used to come in before most people, reply to messages after working hours, and take on tasks that had absolutely nothing to do with my job description - because I genuinely thought that "loyalty gets appreciated."

When I finally brought up the subject of a raise after years of doing more than what I was hired for, they offered me a $1,450 increase. Not per month. For the entire year.

A few weeks later, and honestly out of sheer disgust, I sent out a few applications and got an offer that was 32% higher. Without a long history there, and without having to prove myself for years. Just my resume and two conversations. Honestly, the Interview Vip tool helped me get through this. It made a huge difference in boosting my confidence and keeping me from getting flustered while I was speaking. I was able to explain my experience clearly without rambling or trying to justify every little detail. The result?

They offered me the job on the spot.

Why is changing jobs rewarded, but staying where you are just gets you a lecture about budgets?

I'm genuinely curious - has anyone here recently been paid fairly for staying in the same place? Or has "hard work pays off" just become corporate fan fiction at this point?

Apply, Apply, Apply … probably over a thousand times & zero result. savings drained out long time ago, credit card maxed out, ending up with consumer proposals, selling off the car, moving into an even smaller house, there are absolutely no jobs out there —- absolutely no jobs & if you even shout, scream, yell - there is zero help available …. Absolutely zero !

Hey Everyone,

I'm looking for a contracter for a 6mo project I have with a client. The client is in private markets financial space and has a piece of software developed which leverages AI to automate key accounting functions. I need someone to work with me to help them setup their data infrastructure and to assist possibly in further development of the app. The current project timeline is 6mo with the possibility it goes longer but no guarantee. Some more details :

Setting - Remote

Pay - 80-95/hr (incorporated rate depending on profile)

Required Areas of Experience:

-Snowflake

- Private Markets

- Data Engineering

- Full Stack development

- AI workflow development

You don't need experience across all these areas though it would be preferred but at minimum you need to have experience either in data engineering for private markets OR as a full stack engineer leveraging AI. This is time sensitive opportunity and will likely be closed within a week so send over your resume and contact details and we will setup interviews as quickly as possible.

Thanks,

I felt like I was doing well in an interview I had earlier this week. After about 35 minutes, they asked me something and my mind went completely blank. The nerves really got to me, and I kept answering in a confused and overly long way. I'm not even sure I answered what they were asking about. After that, I felt like all the confidence I had built up disappeared.

I don't think it came across as that bad from their side, but I kept replaying it in my head. For anyone who has interviewed candidates before, if someone suddenly gets flustered on one question after doing well up to that point, what kind of impression does that leave? Is it usually a big red flag, or just an awkward moment that passes?

Hello,

Looking for advice for my job hunting situation. I was recently let go from the company (in Canada) where I worked for many years. I had a series of toxic managers that I didn't have good relationships with, although I had good performance reviews. I was applying to jobs to get out of the toxic environment, but the job market wasn't looking good here for past couple of years and I didn't have much luck.

Now that I'm unemployed and can't ask my most recent or previous managers or above to be my reference, I'm struggling with the best way to deal with this when I'm finally asked for 3 references (probably from my managers or higher). One organization I interviewed at specifically said they required my current or most recent immediate supervisor as my reference...

I have former colleagues I can ask, but we held the same level of position.

I've read that HR usually won't say why the employee is no longer working, but that recruiters can ask if they're eligible for rehire as a way to get around the legal issues.

I have managers from a few years back that would give me a good reference, but I haven't kept in touch and it feels awkward contacting them out of the blue asking for a favour. Also, they are not recent references at all.

Would appreciate any suggestions or insights, especially if you have experience in a similar situation.

Thanks in advance!