Supporting newcomers’ integration at work: A Q&A with PhD candidate Vivi Zhang

New immigrants looking to join Canada’s labour market face a myriad of challenges. Vivi (Hui) Zhang, PhD in Management candidate at Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business, is examining the barriers they face, as well as the support available, with the goal of improving the professional integration of newcomers to Canada.

Vivi recently sat down for a Q&A about her work.

How did you become interested in this area of research?

Immigration is critical to Canada’s economic and social development. Yet, many newcomers encounter challenges finding commensurate employment and face disruption in their career development. I got interested in this area of research due to my personal experience and the aspiration to make some positive impact on newcomers’ integration in the country.

What have you found to be the biggest challenges facing immigrants trying to integrate themselves into the Canadian workforce?

I think that would be the lack of knowledge about the Canadian labour market – for example, job search processes or workplace norms and cultures – and access to social networks. To give you an example, many immigrants in my study reported benefiting from the support of mentors in tailoring their resumes and cover letter to the industry standard, practicing job interviews, and understanding the hiring process within organizations. Without contextual knowledge and networks, many skilled immigrants have difficulty finding employment commensurate with their skills and qualifications and experience downward occupational mobility – such as working in so-called “survival jobs.”

You’re specifically looking at how mentorship programs, run by newcomer support organizations, aid immigrants in finding jobs and developing their careers in Canada. How valuable is mentorship to the newcomer experience?

The benefits of mentoring are widely recognized by career development researchers. Mentored individuals generally report more job satisfaction and greater career advancement prospects than their non-mentored counterparts. While limited, an emerging body of research has demonstrated the promises of formal mentoring for the integration of different types of newcomers, including refugees and immigrants.

In my study, mentorship programs connect immigrants with experienced professionals working in the field, who have in-depth knowledge about the profession and can provide guidance on how to succeed in the job market. Through mentorship programs, immigrants get to build their professional networks, obtain a better understanding of the labour market, and harness the skills and confidence that are necessary for labor market integration. Essentially, mentorship programs help immigrants better prepare for a successful job search while enhancing their self-efficacy, which together increase their job readiness.

You mentioned that one of the practical outcomes you’re hoping for from this project is to highlight the limitations of these mentorship programs so that we can learn how to better support them. What are some of the limitations you have discovered?

Mentorship programs rely heavily on volunteer mentors who are willing to contribute their time and energy to support immigrants. However, sometimes depending on the availability and expertise of mentors, the matching of mentors and mentees lacked fit, leaving gaps in addressing the needs of mentees. Additionally, while mentorship programs have the potential to expand immigrants’ professional networks, many immigrants noted that it was difficult to maintain contact with people introduced to them during the mentorship program.

Support organizations need to facilitate better mentor-mentee matching and create more trust-building activities throughout mentorship programs.

You have also been involved with a number of other research projects about internationally mobile workers – with five papers being published in academic journals. One topic you researched was the challenges faced specifically by immigrant women integrating into the workforce. What are some of these challenges?

Together with my co-authors, we explored the employment experiences of skilled immigrant women in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many immigrant women in our study experienced layoffs, reduced employment opportunities and challenges maintaining their current positions. The pandemic unfortunately placed an increased strain on skilled immigrant women who need to care for their families and seek commensurate employment in a predominantly online work environment, limiting their access to social capital and support.

How has your relationship with your supervisor supported you in your journey?

Luciara has given tremendous support throughout my doctoral study. She involved me in research projects where I got to work with scholars with different areas of expertise and advised me on how to best leverage coursework and conferences to develop my research ideas. More importantly, I appreciate that she is always there for me at different stages of the journey, rain or shine

What have you enjoyed the most about Sprott’s PhD in Management program?

My overall experience at Sprott has been very positive. Not only was I given many opportunities to contribute to research projects that are well aligned with my research areas, but also supported by my thesis supervisor, fellow PhD students, and the broader Sprott community.

My peers and senior PhD students were an important source of emotional and informational support at the early stage of the PhD program when I was new to research and teaching. I greatly appreciated the guidance provided by my comprehensive exam and thesis proposal committees, which have been invaluable to building a strong foundation for my dissertation research.

As I am getting closer to the finish line, having these supports around me keeps me motivated and hopeful for the future.