Weekly insights to help you excel and thrive in Canada 🇨🇦
Hey guys, while everyone's still in summer mode, smart companies are already mapping out their 2026 hiring plans. We’re here to help you position yourself as a standout candidate for the next job or promotion, before the rush hits.
In today’s edition:
Massive government support announced for the job market
How international student landscape is changing
How to stay ahead of 90% of job seekers
Over 500 jobs hiring now
-Anastasia and Anna
📰 What’s new
💵 Massive new $5 billion fund for worker re-skilling announced — The government launched a Strategic Response Fund to help firms diversify and adapt amid U.S. tariff pressures—and a re-skilling package aimed to train 50,000 workers.
🧑🔧 Smarter job search: A $50M digital overhaul of the federal Job Bank will integrate AI, show salaries, flag when employers use AI in hiring, and give feedback on skills gaps within 30 days. A new Worker Dashboard will also connect employers with local talent. Perhaps, we can start trusting JobBank again soon.
💰 Alliances for growth: The feds are dropping $382M into Workforce Alliances, linking employers, unions, and industry groups in sectors under pressure (auto, steel, aluminum) and growth industries (energy, critical minerals, advanced manufacturing). A $50M Workforce Innovation Fund will test local solutions.
🧑🏭 Extra EI support: Starting Oct. 12, 2025, long-tenured workers get 20 extra weeks of EI, with $1.6B budgeted. Two temporary EI measures (waiving the waiting week + letting workers keep severance while on EI) are extended to April 2026.
🇨🇦 Immigration updates:
Study permit costs just went way up. Starting September 1, 2025, international students must show CA $2,260 more in funds—now CA $22,895 total—to qualify for study permits. It’s part of IRCC’s effort to ensure students can actually support themselves here.
Student visa rejections hit a 10-year high. In 2025, Canada turned down 62% of study permit applications, its toughest stance in a decade. The crackdown stems from concerns over misuse and system strain.
Taller financial bar for Atlantic Program newcomers. If you’re eyeing the Atlantic Immigration Program or similar economic streams, you’ll now need more settlement funds—set at 12.5% of the Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) as of late July.
More updates to come after September 3rd public consultations
💵 3 Easy ways to stay competitive in a bad job market
1. Get AI-Savvy (without coding)
AI is eating entry-level jobs, but you can flip that into opportunity. AI isn’t just for engineers anymore—it’s becoming a baseline literacy. Instead of chasing coding bootcamps, focus on AI strategy and workflow integration: how to use tools to make decisions faster, generate insights, and automate routine tasks - and take a Free Prompting course from Google
2. Show skills, not degrees
Employers are shifting to skills-first hiring - degrees matter less than evidence of what you can do. Instead of chasing another diploma, curate a portfolio of projects, case studies, or micro-credentials that solve real problems in your field. Data literacy, problem-solving, and adaptability consistently rank at the top of employer wish-lists.
Note from Anna: Not sure how to do that? We’re working on something that will help you. Sign up here.
3. Tap into the new up-skilling fund
The federal government now offers up to $15,000 in retraining support for mid-career workers in critical sectors (healthcare, AI, clean tech, advanced manufacturing). Don’t just “take a course”—treat this as seed money for a career pivot or entrepreneurial move into in-demand industries.
Note from Anastasia: We’ve made a dozen hires in the last 6 months and have helped over 15 job seekers get an offer. Here’s our honest advice what works and what doesn’t in the current job market.
🍰 Timbits
🛒 Under Armour Outlet deals on 800+ items
🎙 Learn how to speak with confidence
💵 What Canadian households spend money on
🦹 Late September and late October gives you best travel deals
🏖 List of the best all-inclusive deals
🤑 Join DIY Investor meetup in Toronto
On Sunday, September 21st, join Canada’s largest in-person meetup events for DIY investors - with the goal to bring together like-minded investors for an evening of great food, drinks, education, and fun. We’ll be there!
If you’re into DIY investing, or have been looking for a sign to begin investing in the stock market - this is a great event to be part of!
💼 Jobs Highlights
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📍 Intuit, a tax and financial services company, has over 60 positions open in their Toronto office, including WFH opportunities for Tax Experts, Software Developers and Marketing specialists, even for co-op students.
📍 Hydro One, an Ontario utilities provider, has a number of opportunities for co-op students in Marketing, Cybersecurity, Management, Engineering and More
📍 With mining and construction on the rise, BBA Consultants have 400+ job openings in Canada from technicians to engineers and architects to project planners:
📍American company GitLab is hiring for remote positions in Canada with over 30 positions available across Operations, Customer Success, Engineering
📍GoTo, and American software provider, has 10+ roles in Business Development, Marketing, Engineering, Product open in their Quebec offices