Looking for a job? Consider going back to school

Have you been looking for a job recently? Checking out job postings, heading to career fairs, but have been unable to find something that’s the right fit or pays enough? If so, you’re not alone – Alberta’s unemployment rate has been climbing in the new year, and so have the unemployment rates in the province’s major cities Edmonton and Calgary.

It can be daunting trying to find a new job – job hunting on its own can take up a lot of time, and if you’re really keen, you can visit a number of career fairs held across the city year-round.

Finding a job you really love and that pays adequately are other huge hurdles to cross, and with the cost of living continuing to rise, it can be a ton of pressure to have the money coming in as soon as possible.

Whether you’re a newly graduated high school student starting out your career or a more mature employee looking for a career change, it can be valuable to take a pause on the job hunt altogether and reconsider your career options.

“I think a lot of people tend to panic and just rush to find another job in their field,” says Barinder Warraich, Student Development Manager for MaKami College. “But in some situations, such as a student who is just getting started in the workforce, or someone who is maybe looking to make a change, going back to school can actually be the best option.”

That was the case for Michael Neumeyer, a business administration student in MaKami’s Edmonton campus.

“I was let go from my employer John Deere, where I had worked for a long time as an automotive technician, when they left the country,” says Neumeyer, who had planned to retire with the manufacturing company. “I worked in the back, I was comfortable, but I was actually in a rut. I didn’t realize getting laid off was maybe one of the best things that happened to me.”

The circumstances ended up pushing Neumeyer to consider his options. “I had always liked the service side of the automotive business, so I thought I’d go back to school and upgrade my skills.”

After chatting with an advisor at MaKami, Neumeyer decided the business administration program was the best fit for him. “It taught me skills I didn’t have, like Office 365, but I think more importantly it taught me people skills – how to better handle people’s expectations and conflict resolution. It’s more than just an administration role you’re learning, it’s life skills really.”

Neumeyer is close to graduation and excited about his new career path. It’s just one of many stories MaKami’s student advisors have encountered with the students who have joined MaKami. “We have endless stories of students who didn’t know what they wanted to do, or they thought going back to school would just be too hard for them,” says Warraich. “But we always look at hurdles or challenges and think how do we get around this? And as a result we have changed so many people’s lives in so many ways, which just really feels amazing to be able to do.”

MaKami offers a number of programs for its students, including Advanced Clinical Massage Therapy,  Medical Office Assistant, Business Administrative Assistant, Health Care Aide, Master Instructor and more.

The school offers support to its students from the very beginning. “We are always trying to remove barriers as they come up,” says Warraich, who says the application process itself can seem daunting to students of all ages. “We make the application process as easy as possible, and we can guide students through it. We also help students when they’re applying for student loans which can also be intimidating.”

And the student support continues while the student is enrolled and beyond, with innovative programming, tutoring and other supports for persons with a variety of challenges such as learning disabilities, mature learners, ESL and more. “We really just want our students to succeed, and we do what we can to help them graduate and start earning money in a field they find fulfilling and they are passionate about.”  

If you’d like to learn more about how MaKami can help you or someone you know find a new, fulfilling career path, contact us.