"It is not easy to start everything from the beginning, but as legal professionals who we spent most of our lives working in the legal field, it would be a waste of knowledge if we don’t continue to achieve and catch up on our past experience and knowledge.” – BRIEF-Law participant, Freshta Karimi
This week, the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies (SCS) marked the successful conclusion of the BRIEF-Law program with a ceremony and celebration recognizing the hard work of women law professionals from around the world who took part in the program.
BRIEF-Law is a pre-bridging program designed to prepare women who are internationally-trained law professionals for entry into specialized bridging or employment programs in Canada.
Participants had their education and transferable skills, as well as their English language proficiency assessed. Then they attended a personalized selection of School of Continuing Studies English language classes, micro courses, and career coaching hand-picked to help prepare them to apply their unique skills and experience to successfully transition into the Canadian labour market.
“It is so exciting to have SCS be a part of these brilliant women’s pathways from successful law careers in their countries of origin to what we have no doubt will be equally valuable and impressive work here in Canada,” says SCS Dean Catherine Chandler-Crichlow.
In addition to the English classes, micro courses, and career coaching, participants took part in mentorships with senior legal professionals, networking events with justices of the Ontario Court, Supreme Court of Canada and law students, leadership skills workshops, and a series of law career-related conversation workshops featuring Faculty of Law alumni; academic advising and workshops; presentations from diverse sectors to provide insight into alternative careers; and occupation-specific job search and employment preparation, including resume writing and interview skills through ACCES Employment’s How to Find a Job program.
“I have loved seeing the women go through each component and seeing them communicate in a way that’s more confident the further they moved through the program,” says SCS Career Services program administrator Carla Gomez.
Participant Freshta Karimi studied law in Afghanistan and was the founder and executive director of a Legal Aid Organization there for 17 years before relocating to Canada. She was excited to join the BRIEF-Law program to foster her network and connections in the Canadian law field and learn more about the legal system here.
Karimi says she would highly recommend that other women legal professionals newly arrived in Canada seek out a program like BRIEF-Law.
“This program provides a lot of good information and learning in a short period of time which is a career-accelerating opportunity for professionals,” she explains.
“It is not easy to start everything from the beginning, but as legal professionals who we spent most of our lives working in the legal field, it would be a waste of knowledge if we don’t continue to achieve and catch up on our past experience and knowledge. There are good opportunities for women such as this program and we have to use these opportunities to get back on our path.”
