Social and Cultural Integration of Internationally Trained Immigrants in Northern Ontario, Canada

We investigated the challenges faced by internationally trained immigrants’ (ITIs) social and cultural integration in Northern Ontario, Canada. In-depth face-to-face interviews were conducted with 74 ITIs, immigrated to Canada within the past 10 years and living in a Northern Ontario community for a minimum of six months. Results show their eexpectation prior to arrival in Canada were overly optimistic, based on word-of-mouth referrals from friends, family, and former immigrants but underestimated the requirement for Canadian credentials and lacked preparedness for social integration, language skills, cultural awareness and networks. Perceptions reported include greater access to transportation, language training, employment and settlement services for newcomers was required in Northern Ontario as compared to larger cities. Participants felt they were better able to integrate when they prepared from their home country, attended a Canadian educational institution, or had a network of family and friends for support. Findings have policy relevance at the federal, provincial and community level and may be extended to other Canadian cities