People often ask me: why am I not just looking for a job in Canada? Why go back to school, especially at my age, when most people are settled into a career, stable, and moving forward?
The truth is, my work history has never followed a neat path. I graduated right as the U.S. economy collapsed in 2008. From then on, I took any job that offered me health insurance, a 401(k), and a full-time paycheck. That’s how I became an employment counselor for people with disabilities.
I worked hard at it for ten years. I advocated at hearings, helped clients keep their Medicaid, calculated food stamps in my head, and fought for benefits that sometimes meant life or death. But I also battled my own challenges. With profound dyslexia, I’ve always struggled with writing, paperwork, and organization. Social work requires endless documentation, and that part of the job nearly broke me. My health suffered, I developed bleeding ulcers, and I overheard my bosses say I’d never be promoted because I didn’t have the right degree and I was always “behind” on paperwork. The raises never came, just the occasional $500 “bonus.” Eventually, I burned out and left.
Like many others, I turned to tech bootcamps. I learned to code, built websites, and even landed a prestigious fellowship. But just as I finished, the tech industry began laying off workers. The only steady role I could find was part-time, back at the bootcamp. So I fell back into social services, only to see those jobs defunded too. Most recently, I lost a school position when the program’s funding was cut.
At this point, I have 20 years of work experience and a BA, yet I’m still fighting for stable employment. My disabilities make frontline social work an impossible fit, I can’t stand long hours on my bad foot, and I can’t keep up with constant documentation. And yet, the skills I do have, advocacy, teaching, accessibility, and tech—aren’t rewarded in my current field. People like to say, “Well, at least you feel good about helping people.” That doesn’t pay the rent.
So why grad school, and why Canada? Because I need a new direction. Tech still makes sense for me, but not coding alone. I love teaching. I love organizing ideas and helping others learn. I love accessibility, and I’ve been trying for years to bring my tech background into that space. Concordia University in Montréal offers a master’s program in Educational Technology that combines all of this: accessibility, UX, adult learning, and hands-on experience.
It’s a two-year co-op program, meaning students graduate with multiple internships under their belt something U.S. programs rarely offer. In my first semester, I’ll be rehabbing from surgery, but after that, I’ll be able to build paid experience while studying. Their curriculum already integrates accessibility, and I’ll be able to tailor my focus toward adults with disabilities, which aligns perfectly with my background.
There are other reasons, too. Canada is actively building accessibility infrastructure, including a “talking books” program similar to the one that changed my life as a dyslexic child. Montréal itself is more affordable than New York, and learning French, while daunting, is exciting to me. I’ve already begun networking with Canadian accessibility professionals, and I see opportunities opening that simply don’t exist here.
So no, I’m not just applying to jobs. I’ve done that. I know where that road ends. Grad school at Concordia feels like the right next step: one that combines my social work history, my tech training, my advocacy for people with disabilities, and my love of teaching, into a career I can actually sustain.
