RAC Champlain College Saint-Lambert (https://champlainrac.com/wp-content/themes/chrac)

RAC for Immigrants

Program Objective

The RAC for immigrants program was specifically designed for immigrants
who have experience working with information technologies and who are having
difficulties integrating the Quebec workforce. The program’s objective is to
help candidates gain an official, Canadian recognition of their competencies
and to allow them to benefit from seminars that will help them integrate the
transportation and logistics workforce in Quebec.

Difficulties Immigrants Face

• Lack of knowledge of the Quebec way of doing business
• Linguistic difficulties (in French or/and in English)
• No Canadian diploma
• No Canadian experience

Duration of the program

• 10 weeks in class
• 6 weeks internship

Characteristics of the Curriculum Specifically Adapted to Immigrants

Weekly:

• Each week, the candidates receive additional communication classes in
  French and in English. During these classes, the candidates practice the
  vocabulary related to the subject discussed in the seminar of that
  particular week (ex: during the week on networking, they will discuss networking in French and English).
• Each week, the candidates attend seminars that have been specifically
  prepared for immigrant candidates and they have classroom activities
  periods under the guidance of a specialist. The seminars cover the
  competencies required to obtain the AEC(Attestation d’Études
  Collégiales) Information Technology Support Specialist LEA.1Q.

Generally:

• The candidates attend specialized seminars on the integration to Quebec society and Quebec workforce. Some of the subjects discussed are:

• Businesses and their organisation in Quebec
• The integration process
• Perception and non-verbal communication
• Workplace relationships in Quebec
• Know how to promote yourself to Quebec businesses
• The importance of networking in Quebec
• The candidates also benefit from employment search seminars and activities during which they receive help
  with their Curriculum Vitae writing and cover letter writing, practice for job interviews, and get job search tips.

Measures for success:

• The evaluations are done on-site, during the class week, and in the
  presence of a content specialist. The majority of the evaluations have
  an individual interview with a content specialist component.
• The candidates receive a complete evaluation of their linguistic
  progress in French and English at the beginning and at the end of the program.
• Each week, there is generally one or two free blocks so that the
  candidates who need it may request individual tutoring time with a
  content specialist.

Program Description

The program, inspiring itself from the Recognition of Acquired competencies for individuals, lasts 16 weeks, at approximately 25 hours per week. For the first 10 of those weeks, the candidates are doing in-class activities, attending seminars, and doing in-class evaluations and for the last 6 weeks, they are in an internship.

Champlain College’s program’s objective is to update the candidate’s knowledge in the ITCS domain while paying particular attention to the context in which workers in the industry evolve in Quebec (ex: company procedures, rules and regulations of the industry in Quebec and in Canada, seminars on the integration to the Quebec culture and workforce). Furthermore, since communication in French and English is important to work in the field, the candidates receive additional training hours for communication in French and English related to the topic of the week in ITCS. The candidates also benefit from assistance for resume writing, cover letter writing, job interview, and job search.