In the second episode of the collaboration between The Newcomers and Canadian Immigrant, Baisakhi Roy, editor of Canadian Immigrant, and I chat with Daniel Bernhard, CEO of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship (ICC) and try to answer the question:

Should you still immigrate to Canada?

To give you a hint of how the conversation went, Daniel still thinks newcomers should choose Canada, despite the changes he wants to make to its immigration system.

Daniel, Baisakhi, and I explore that and:

• Why he separates licensing barriers from employer bias

• How immigrants’ overseas relationships can help Canadian companies expand their trade

• If he would change anything about Canada's immigration selection process

• How housing and healthcare goals could guide immigration selection

• How struggling to find work can shape your view of Canada

• Whether Canada meets the expectations it sets for the people it invites

Dozie's Notes

A few things that stuck with me as I listened through this week's conversation:

1. Our measure of the success of our immigration policy has to include what happens to the immigrant after arrival. For example, if we say that immigrants improve our healthcare system, then getting more internationally trained doctors into medical practice has to be part of how we judge the success or failure of our approach to immigration.

Official Links

✅ Connect with Daniel Bernhard on LinkedIn

✅ Download the Canoo app

One Ask

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Timestamps

0:00 Should you still immigrate to Canada?

0:41 Intro

6:26 Putting qualified healthcare professionals to work

11:21 Show employers what bias costs them

20:09 Canada's white-collar preference

26:26 Rethink the Express Entry selection

29:55 Use your skills beyond your old job title

34:12 Let's measure what happens after admission

39:07 Comparing Canada with the alternatives

43:27 Canada wants no immigrants?

44:51 Lightning round

51:38 Outro