Photographic project by Adriana Hernandez
Leaving one country to settle in another one represents a lot of personal, family and professional changes. In Quebec, government policies and professional orders would further complicate the professional integration of newcomers by imposing long and tedious process which is also cost-related. That is why a large number of immigrants decide to forget about their diplomas, to start from scratch and discover a new profession.
Returning to school for additional short-course vocational training would promise a job that is often much easier to obtain than following the long road of requesting foreign credentials recognition by the government or the professional orders. Also, immediate integration on labour market position for which they are overqualified would represent another option.
This is how holders of diplomas, experience and skills are being sidelined and rich potential is being wasted in the name of political and complex administrative procedures that change and thwart the future of newcomers.