New Canadians: your one-stop immigration guide

Thousands of thoughts crisscross your mind – getting a place to stay, finding a job, admitting kids to schools. The settlement journey can indeed be challenging, especially if you do not have the right resources at your disposal.

Coming to the rescue of such newcomers for three years, New Canadians, an innovative TV and web show, is a one-stop shop for all matters related to immigration – from information on professional immigrant networks and entrepreneurship to settlement, employment and education.

New Canadians expands on multiple platforms (online, TV, events, webinars). The team primarily consists of internationally educated journalists and media professionals.

The brain behind the show, Gerard Keledjian, is a foreign-trained journalist who immigrated to Canada in 2010. Before coming to Canada, Keledjian was working for an international TV station in Dubai, UAE, and before that for a national TV station and Armenian community newspapers in Beirut, Lebanon.

In 2012, he founded New Horizons Media, a video production social enterprise, to help Canadian non-profits and small businesses with their video and content requirements.

“I want to help newcomers to Canada and prospective immigrants be better prepared for their Canadian journey and enjoy this great country and what it offers. Coming from a media background, I know how video can play an effective role in raising awareness and motivating recent immigrants to benefit from the many resources available to them,” he says.

The show has five segments: settlement, education, employment/small business, success stories, and immigration news and special events.

“Through information I want to help newer immigrants struggle less and succeed more and faster,” Keledjian says. 

Among his recent successes, Sohail Sayani and Vasudha Sharma are two such immigrants who have benefitted from New Canadians.

“I started watching New Canadians’ videos online when I was in India as a part of prepping for immigration. I discovered that TV episodes were very informative and useful for newcomers. I would suggest potential immigrants to watch it even before leaving their present countries so that they are well prepared in advance and this can save precious time in settling down. If one doesn’t have a job as a newcomer, every day can be daunting as the savings can get depleted very quickly as the expenses are very high here,” Sohail says.

“I was prepared better, even my family used to watch it there. The visuals help you get a feel of the city. I came to know about many programs available for newcomers here,” he adds.

Vasudha, who left her promising media career in India to fulfill her immigration dream, vouches for New Canadians: “I was approached by Gerard to discuss my professional experience and skills with him after I shared my profile on a media networking platform. He was very encouraging and was perhaps the first industry professional in Canada I had the opportunity to network with and also seek advice from. I have since volunteered with New Canadians as a reporter, shooting interviews with interesting personalities featured on the program. I knew I needed local journalism samples to further my career in this country.”

“Also the opportunity to meet these achievers and immigrants who have made it despite all odds is a source of inspiration for me as I establish my roots here in Canada,” Vasudha signs off.

* New Canadians is broadcast on OMNI Television in Canada, and also available online and on YouTube.