Putting the ‘V’ into CV

By Mel Fernandez

How crucial is volunteering to finding a job? “It’s a big thing,” says Lulette Carnie, Regional Employment Co-ordinator at ARMS. “As migrants like Jody really want a job in their profession, they can use the volunteer scheme as a foundation to land a dream job.”

Like so many migrants before them Jody Arsenio, husband Jethro and son RJ made a momentous decision to relocate to NZ in February 2011.

By going down this path, they were leaving behind their close-knit family circle, friends, secure jobs and well-established networks to plunge into the unknown.

In spite of being well qualified, finding a job was not as straightforward as what Arsenio and her husband thought it would be.

The fact that they were very new to the country was obvious to the employers who received their CVs. Mrs Arsenio asked Asian Migrant News (AMN www.migrantnews.co.nz): “Why didn’t they give us a chance?

“I realised I had to do something about this,” she explains. “I can be discouraged or take this as a challenge. I chose to stay positive and hopeful.

“I saw from the pamphlet in the library that the Auckland Regional Migrant Centre (ARMS) was providing different seminars for new migrants.”

She attended job search seminars there and became aware what was missing in her CV; something many migrants are in denial about, the lack of New Zealand experience.

“At the seminar, new skilled migrants are encouraged to seek volunteer experience to gain NZ work experience,” says Lulette Carnie, Regional Employment Co-ordinator at ARMS.

“They also gain knowledge about NZ business culture and the workplace environment, improve their language and communication skills, gain confidence, get connected with ARMS networks and access other ARMS programmes and services.

“In the course of volunteering, volunteers will have access to see the Employment Programme Coordinator for individualised consultations, coaching and mentoring.

“We have volunteer positions in reception, communications and IT at ARMS.” Carnie took Arsenio on as a volunteer Employment Project Assistant.

“She was responsible for administration work, database management, customer service, preparing work packs and clients’ follow ups,” she elaborated.

“The advantage of volunteer work was it gave me confidence. I was helping migrants and doing office works with people from different cultural backgrounds,” says Arsenio.

“In the Philippines I was doing administration work, as we had our own hardware and construction business.

“I also taught economics for five years at the University of Santo Tomas and six years in Polytechnic University of the Philippines. I had to find a job in my field to get a residence visa.” During her volunteer stint at ARMS she found part-time work as an economics tutor in two private training establishments (PTEs), this experience embellished her CV.

“Jody’s attitude was positive, she was outgoing, proactive and professional in communication and appearance,” says Carnie.

“She is a team player, has willingness to learn and gave me more than what was expected and required as a volunteer. She is also innovative.”

This glowing reference and New Zealand experience in administration at ARMS plus teaching economics part-time helped her find a dream job.

Her current role at Oxford International Academy is as an administration manager. “I have a challenging job and it involves dealing with the Ministry of Education, Immigration New Zealand, Public Trust, doing other office work and attending to students and tutors needs. I am also teaching economics part-time at the school.”

She is into her fourth week at the academy and says that she enjoys a supportive environment.

Jody told AMN that it took about five and a half months to find part-time work and seven months for full time. She is delighted that she is working in her own field, as she can now apply for a residence visa.

“On the same day I started my job, my husband also started work in Holy Cross Primary School.”

How crucial is volunteering to finding a job? “It’s a big thing,” says Carnie. “We have a high turnover of volunteers. As migrants like Jody really want a job in their profession, they can use the volunteer scheme as a foundation to land a dream job.”