Coming to Canada...

Hi everyone,


My name is Antonio and I am 25 years old. I come from a family of 5 living in Sao Paulo, Brazil where I used to work in construction for the city. While I am able to get constant work in Brazil, it doesn’t pay enough to support my family and I am the sole provider for my mom and four siblings. Through word of mouth, I’ve heard that the construction industry in Canada is quickly growing and that is why I made the decision to move here just a short while ago. Eventually I hope to make enough money and to have a home so that I can bring my family over, but that will have to be after I’ve figured out my work and living situation for myself first.


Since this is my first time living outside of Brazil, I do have quite a few concerns. First and foremost, my mother tongue is Portuguese, and I only have a minimal amount of English skills. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find any construction jobs like I had planned to here in Canada yet, just because all the employers I had interviews with said that my English isn’t good enough for me to work with their company. Secondly, money is of great worry to me as well. I do have to send money back home every month, but I also need to pay for living and food expenses for myself while I live here as well. This leaves me very stressed and constantly worrying about whether I have made the right decision to move here or not.


My plans so far for my first year in Canada basically involve me working two jobs – dish washing and tending to a gas station. While this does allow me to make enough money to live in Canada and send money to Brazil for my family, it doesn’t give me very much time to improve my English skills, which is important for me to do in order to find a job in construction. Fortunately, I was informed that I could enroll in some MOOCs, which are Massive Open Online Courses that offer classes in just about any subject and you can learn and do assignments whenever you want, and take all the time you need. So far I’ve enrolled in English communications, reading, and writing classes, as well as a construction skills class to increase my skillset for my job in the future. I hope to be able to do my homework and learn between my jobs, and bring my English skills up to par.


- Antonio