From Graduating the Top Ivy League level Institute to doing Manual Labour: The Struggles of an Immigrant Engineer Soham GuptaFrom Graduating the Top Ivy League level Institute to doing Manual Labour: The Struggles of an Immigrant Engineer Soham Gupta

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For immigrants in the tech / Engineering industry, finding a job can be an uphill battle. Not only that, but many immigrants face prejudice and bias due to their backgrounds. Such is the story of Soham Gupta, who immigrated from India with a degree from a top Ivy League level engineering institute (IITKGP). The same institute where Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai graduated from.  He faced numerous struggles as he tried to make his way in Canada, including multiple survival jobs and rejection from employers due to his foreign background. But this all changed when he found an engineering job related to warehousing and material storage—one that allowed him to thrive in his new home country.

Soham Gupta was born in India and like any Indian family his parents always wanted him to become either a doctor or an engineer. Coincidently he actually liked studying science and math and physics. His parents made a lot of sacrifices to get him the best education he could possibly have. After graduating, he got a decent job in a mid level engineering consultancy.

After a couple a years later when the company got acquired by a bigger company, they got restructured and he was suddenly let go.

So, in hopes of finding a better life for himself he immigrated to Canada. However, he experienced an immense amount of difficulty trying to secure employment due to his foreign background. He was repeatedly rejected by hiring managers because they felt that he did not have enough “Canadian experience” or any connections or references within their respective industries. The $6000 he brought with him quickly dried up in a few months. This led him down a difficult path where he was forced to take on various low-paying survival jobs just so that he could make ends meet. He started as a general labourer in a warehouse for which only qualification needed was him being able to lift 40 lbs. He spent several years picking orders in various warehouses. It was a back-breaking, mind-numbing and a very humbling experience.

Losing hope in ever getting another engineering job in his field. He tried his hand at other growing online trends like drop-shipping, affiliate marketing, Facebook marketing agency, SEO agency, copywriting etc.; while working multiple jobs on the side like forklift operator, uber eats delivery on his bicycle, security guard, bar tending, Mortgage agent, retail customer service rep, real estate wholesaling etc. At one point he was working 3 jobs working over 82 hours per week just so he could save enough to invest in his online business ventures.

After going through dozens of survival jobs over Five years and barely making something of his online businesses, Mr. Gupta thought of applying for his engineering job one last time. And surprisingly finally found an engineering job in his field. His experience in warehousing actually helped him get the engineering job that was related to warehouse and material storage at one of the most prestigious companies in the industry in Canada Cam Industrial.

As soon as he joined, it became evident that this position required skills beyond just technical knowledge; it also demanded good communication skills and marketing abilities, something Soham had learned over the years of his struggle.   Not only did Soham excel at this position but also became a critical part of his company’s expansion in a new branch in Vancouver where he spearheads the company’s new business endeavors with much success!

Soham Gupta’s story is truly inspiring for many immigrants who are facing similar struggles as they try to make their way into the workforce here in the west. Despite facing hardships based on his foreign background, Soham persevered through manual labor jobs and other hardships before eventually finding success as a Structural engineer with one of Canada’s leading Material handling and storage solution company Cam Industrial. His tale should serve as proof that even those who come from disadvantaged backgrounds can still find success if they work hard enough for it!  By utilizing both technical expertise and skills gained through struggle, Soham has been able to prove himself as an invaluable asset within his organization—and we can all learn to never give up Hope!

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