Algonquin College Pembroke Campus International Alumnus Pursues Nursing Career
Posted on Friday, March 8th, 2024
Aneeta Jacob was only 17 years old when she travelled abroad to enroll in the Social Service Worker program at Algonquin College’s Pembroke Campus. She had grown up in the southern section of India, a tropical region where the temperatures routinely hit 30 degrees Celcius, but she had become captivated by the pictures she had seen of the snowy conditions of Canada. She knew in her heart, some day she would live in this country that seemed so far away.
“I thought the snow would feel like cotton, but coming to Canada, I never knew the snow would be so cold,” says Jacob who has now settled into her adopted country as a permanent resident and is pursuing her dream to work in health care.
Aneeta Jacob was only 17 years old when she left India to study in the Social Service Worker program at Algonquin College’s Pembroke Campus.
In India, she had written an entrance test to study medicine, but the draw to Canada and her young age prompted her to change her plans. She had no idea where Pembroke was, but she was excited when she received an offer of admission from the International Education Centre at Algonquin College.
With only one family member living in Canada, an aunt based in Calgary, Jacob was setting out on her own, eyes wide open with the hopes of starting a new life that would include the fluffy white stuff that had first drawn her to considering studying abroad. She came to the Pembroke Campus at a time when there were only a handful of international students, enrolling in the fall of 2018. Her friendly disposition allowed her to connect easily with classmates and staff, helping her make the transition to her new home.
“I am so happy I got into Algonquin College. The staff and faculty made me feel at home. I now see how much they cared,” says Jacob who now lives in Alberta and is studying to become a registered nurse at Mount Royal University in Calgary.
It was the COVID-19 pandemic and the difficult isolation that came with it that prompted Jacob to re-locate to the West. She was only a few weeks away from completing her Social Service Worker program when the pandemic kept her in a tiny apartment in Pembroke, not able to make the connections with people who had helped her navigate her time in school and in the broader community.
Aneeta Jacob graduated from the Social Service Worker program at Algonquin College’s Pembroke Campus. She is now studying nursing at Mount Royal University in Calgary.
Her parents in India were worried about her safety, prompting her Aunt in Calgary to reach out, encouraging her to come live with her until things improved, but at the height of the pandemic it meant Jacob would need to stay in isolation for 14 days. Not being able to connect with her Aunt in person, despite living in the same house was really difficult, but in the pre-vaccination world of COVID, she did what she needed to do, following public health guidelines to protect others.
“It was very tough on me living alone in the basement of the home. I watched a lot of youtube videos,” says Jacob who stayed with her aunt for six months.
During COVID, many government services were not available. Jacob desperately wanted to get her post graduate employment permit so she could start working in the social work field, but she would have to wait. It took months to get it, but when it did come through, Jacob was on the move, seeking employment in her field.
She moved to Edmonton, but because of the pandemic shutdowns, she had trouble finding work, until an opportunity to work with people with disabilities opened a door for her to start her career in the social work field in the small town of Saint Paul, near Lloydminster, Saskatchewan. Jacob stayed in the border town for a year-and-a-half, then moved to Airdrie, Alberta, about a 20 minute drive from Calgary. There she became a team lead when she found another job that used her social service worker skills and she gained permanent residency status. She took a driver’s test and got her licence, bought herself a car, giving her more independence and she again started thinking about expanding her career into health care.
“Nursing called me. I always knew I would do well in a crisis and that I wanted to work in medicine,” says Jacob who has just completed the first year of her baccalaureate program. Her previous studies at Algonquin College have helped her in her university courses, particularly the Developmental Psychology and Communications courses that she completed in the Social Service Worker program.
While she has been away from Pembroke for a few years, Jacob has a longing to return, maybe for a visit or potentially to work as a nurse after she graduates. “Pembroke treated me so warmly and my goal is to do something for Canada and to be a nurse that patients can depend on. I like small towns and once I am done, I want to move back to Pembroke.”
The shortage of nurses in smaller communities has put tremendous stress on the local labour market within the health care field. Jacob is an example of an international student who has fallen in love with Canada and is eager to make a difference in our country, but what separates her from many other immigrants, is her desire to work in a smaller community. While many newcomers settle in larger urban centres, Jacob says she is most at home in places like Saint Paul and Pembroke.
For now, she will work hard to complete her Nursing degree. If all goes as planned, she will graduate in the spring of 2027. A lot can change in three years, but right now Jacob has her eye on Pembroke. She misses the city and thinks often about how her first experience in Canada has shaped her desire to someday be a Canadian citizen, contributing to rural health care.
(Posted by Jamie Bramburger. Manager of Community and Student Affairs)
- Posted in
- Waterfront Campus Blog