Friday, May 12, 2017

Connect & Explore Youth Networking Event


We have heard it a million times before - when it comes to finding a job or deciding on a career path, networking is key!  But, whether you are young or old, networking can feel like quite the endeavor. Where do you start? How do you go about meeting and connecting with professionals willing to share their experience with you? What do you say?  What don't you say? 

With that in mind, CultureLink’s  Youth Online Employment Strategy (YOES) partnered with the Toronto Youth Equity Strategy (TYES) to host the first ever Connect & Explore Youth Networking event at City Hall this past April 13th.

To help youth build their social capital and explore career opportunities in various sectors, we invited professionals from the healthcare, financial service, marketing & communications and non-profit sectors to share their experiences with youth.  Through interactive games and speed mentoring, youth had the chance to connect with a variety of  mentors in an open and fun environment, learn about their career paths, discover new career possibilities and receive advice from professionals working in the field.

Lively conversations could be heard throughout the night! The room was packed with youth and mentors sharing stories, personal challenges, job searching tips and much more!  Here are some photos of what went down: 


Our Graphic Designer/Illustrator mentor, Barb,  sharing her experience getting into her field.


Discussing a career in respiratory therapy with our mentors Monica (left) and Hibaq (right). 


Learning about the different careers in capital markets with our RBC Capital Markets mentors Catherine, Kirill and Hiren. 

Career advice and industry insights with our marketing and communication mentors Madelaine and Gelek. 


           Ending the speed mentoring sessions with some friendly competition and team-building. Pictured here are our enthusiastic mentors Malvika, Zarina, Jonah, Hiren and Catherine (left to right).


A big congratulations to our Networking Tower Challenge winners! 

This night would not have been possible without the dedication of our amazing placement team (Abdi, Alex, Andre, Gyu, Jaqui and Lorna) and our passionate mentors! Thank you for making this a night to remember! 

For more information about YOES and our upcoming youth networking events, contact Asal at aafshar@culturelink.ca or 416-588-6288x211. 

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