On Jan. 31, St. Thomas University hosted a lecture by Fariba Solati which was a part of the Dialogos Faculty Seminar Series.
Solati, an associate economics professor at STU, had the opportunity to present the results of her ongoing research project looking into “brain waste” in Canada.
The presentation titled “Brain Waste: Evidence of Immigrants Job-Education Mismatch in Canada” explained the phenomenon that affects immigrants finding a job that matches their education.
She defined “brain waste” as the misuse of “the brains that we are missing in Canada” by not giving immigrants the opportunity to develop their abilities in their fields of expertise.
“The system is broken because it accepts [immigrants] because of their degrees, but then they come and they cannot work through those degrees,” said Solati.
Working collaboratively with other researchers and students, Solati found that the most recent immigrants to Canada do not have jobs in their field of education even though they hold high-level credentials.
She discussed the consequences of the point system that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) uses to accept immigrants.
The system is based on factors such as age, level of education, language proficiency in English or French, arranged employment and adaptability.
The majority of immigrants enter Canada through the economic class stream which is based on the Human Capital Framework of the point system.
“The point system aims to specifically select those with highest levels of human capital,” she said during the lecture. “As a consequence of this current system, new immigrants in Canada are highly educated.”
Solati said that the evaluation of credentials is what affects immigrants the most in their ability to land matching jobs. Canadian organizations prefer to hire those who have obtained their title in the country.
“It’s more the origin of that piece of paper than the colour of my skin or my accent or my name,” she said.
Ameri Suzuki, a fourth-year international student from Japan, commented on the importance of having a degree from a well-known university. She said that grades usually do not matter; it’s the name of the university that attracts employers.
“Once you’re in, it’s all about the branding of the university you’re attending.”
Suzuki said that many incoming students are concerned with their employability.
“There is that kind of situation right now where it’s like, ‘Oh, I don’t know what I like anymore, because, at the end of the day, I have to make ends meet,’” she said. “So it just comes down to the question of survival.”
Solati mentioned that a great factor that contributes to immigrants accepting mismatched jobs is their needs. Their employability also depends on whether they are responsible for their family and children.
“They don’t have the option to find a job that matches their education because it can take [too] long,” she said. “So they conform with a job that pays the bills.”
Solati highlighted that the longer immigrants stay in Canada, the better opportunities they have to get a job that matches their education and among them, young immigrants have the best possibilities.
“The younger you are, the more persistent you are,” said Solati.
