In my course titled Human-Information Interaction, I had to serve as an intermediary for a search for a classmate. Through this assignment, I was able to integrate several skills I had learned: collaboration, effective communication, and I was able to practice a reference interview.
Search Question
My client is considering moving to the UK after completion of their degree program. They wanted sources to help them start to understand the immigration process from Canada to the UK such as: Where to even begin? What’s involved in making a job-related move to the UK? What kind of visa is required? How does an immigrant access services, such as medical services? Is Brexit going to have an effect on this process?
Search Process
Being unfamiliar with UK immigration law and policies, I started with a simple Google search (“immigration to the UK”) in order to get an overview for myself to then be able to narrow down the results. I was most concerned with getting a “bird’s eye” view first to gain a general understanding of the information available. I put the questions into “If” and “Then” categories in order to assess the validity of sources that were available first.
It quickly became clear that in order to guide them to the resources that would be most helpful, it would be necessary to ask questions that some populations might consider sensitive and personal in nature. I asked, “Do you have a passport?” and since the answer was yes, I then asked “Do you have a Canadian passport?” in order to move from general to specific, and in the hopes that if the patron did not answer those questions, the questioning would give space for them to not answer the question, if they did not wish to. This was also trying to bear in mind that an individual might not realize what kind of documents, including a passport, would be involved with such a process. If that were the case, I could have then directed them to resources about how to get a passport first, so that they might get a fuller picture and understand the various kinds of documents necessary for this kind of move.
Narrowing the Search
With the questions above, I was able to narrow the search slightly to “Immigration to UK for Canadian citizen” and found the following resource: “Work and travel in the United Kingdom: International Experience Canada”, which listed the following considerations and requirements:
This program is for Canadian citizens 18-30 years old who have a valid Canadian passport.
This program requires that applicants are required to apply for a Tier 5 visa.
If accepted, an individual can live and work in UK for up to 24 months.
Applicants are advised to apply 6 months before they travel, and they can expect a response within three weeks of application.
This helped me narrow my search further. I followed the “UK website” hyperlink on the Canadian government’s webpage, and I was redirected to the UK’s webpage titled “Youth Mobility Scheme visa (Tier 5)”, which provides an overview of the visa, defines who is eligible, lists the documents that must be provided at the time of application, and a link to begin the application.
Here I was able to find some of the specifics that would be of interest to my client, provided they fell within the age restrictions of the Tier 5 visa. (I later provided them to them in bullet list form, as follows):
Cost: £244
Required: £1,890 in savings
Applicants must pay healthcare surcharge (£300 per year. For example, an applicant would pay £600 for a 2-year visa.)
Under Tier 5, you can work in most jobs (although this excludes jobs in the medical field)
The Canadian government also recommends applicants who want to work abroad under International Experience Canada utilize a Recognized Organization (RO). For a small fee, an RO can advise applicants and help answer all of their questions. It is not required for the process, but the organizations can provide country-specific information such as: culture, laws, taxes, help applicants find a job, and provide general support and advice. I decided to provide my client with a link to the list of Recognized Organizations provided, so that they could make the financial decision on their own. I also did not continue to learn more about Recognized Organizations, as my client only wanted to know where to begin the process of immigration to the UK. While clearly a useful resource if it is within their means, it did not merit further investigation until they had made any more official decisions to move.
Switching Gears
In finding this information, it became clear that the searcher could easily be overwhelmed by the vocabulary, the kinds of visas required, and the different considerations once must take into account. It also became clear that many of the top information available was primarily for individuals aged 18-30, and that being above 30 years old at the start of the application makes the process more complex. Not wanting to assume their age or ask for it directly, I would therefore also need to find further information for applicants over 30.
I returned to Google and searched “Immigration to UK for Canadian citizen over 30”, of which there were significantly fewer results, although from reputable government sources, such as the UK’s visa bureau, which provided a table breaking down the visa types.
I could not find the same kind of direct, straightforward resources regarding immigration from Canada to the UK for applicants over 30 as I could for applicants under 30. After 30, by performing a general to specific search, it became clear that under the many different circumstances that one might immigrate to the UK, there are many different processes for moving through the immigration system. I decided to provide a link to the table describing each of the different visa types (above), as a means for my client to be able to later compare and contrast the different types of visas available.
To further add to the complexity, I decided to look into one of my client's sub-questions, which was “What effect, if any, will Brexit have on the immigration process for Canadians?” I added “Brexit” to my search, and was directed to a link on the UK government’s website about the matter, which provides considerations and a general outline of what one might expect. This is an unstable resource, however, as no official decisions have yet been made.
Simplify, Simplify, Simplify
Wanting to make the process easier to understand and digest without the need for me to ask explicitly for their age, I went back to Google to my second search (“Immigration to UK for Canadian citizen”), and found the official UK immigration site in the top results. Hoping to find some resources that might speak directly to immigration over the age of 30, I looked through the “site map” at the bottom of the page and found “Visas and immigration,” and clicked the link. At the top of the list was link titled “What you need to do” and then followed the menu to the option, “Check if you need a UK visa”. This is where I found the most direct and helpful resource: a quiz created by the UK government where the taker answers questions such as “What’s your nationality as shown on your passport or travel document?” and “What are you coming to the UK to do?” and “How long are you planning to work in the UK for?” I practiced filling out the quiz myself, as if I were interested in moving to the UK, in order to make sure that it was indeed a helpful resource to send along.
During the reference interview, my client had initially put their question in terms of wanting to find an “entry point” into the immigration process, as they was feeling overwhelmed and unsure of where to begin. As such, the quiz found on the UK government seemed to be the perfect solution to their problem. It seemed to be the most reasonable place to end my search, as I had found significant background information, had verified various sites that would be helpful to them, and provided a simple entryway into which they could begin their own searches.
Sharing the Information
In providing the search results to my client, I showed them the UK government-created quiz first, and suggested they begin there. I also found “listicles” from various websites in an effort to break down the results, which seemed like sources more likely to state and list directly the kinds of documents required among other considerations for processes such as opening a bank account. These resources seemed to be the most accessible way to approach the problem, as they break down the immigration process into steps and considerations for each individual.
While not inherently reputable in and of themselves, I checked the links provided to ensure that they were truly offering a simplified version of what could be gathered from more reputable sources, rather than offering biased or incorrect information. The resources I found on TransferWise.com seemed especially valuable, as they included specific considerations regarding the cost of living in the UK, providing concrete examples of expenses for everyday items that an individual might purchase: a pint of beer, a dozen eggs, a transportation costs, a litre of gas, and a one-bedroom apartment. The source does, however, seem to be directed towards a young, single person considering to immigrate to the UK, but the principles found in it are generally relevant.
After summarizing and discussing the findings with her, I emailed my client a bulleted list of links with descriptions to the resources I found so that they could peruse them on their own.
Reflections
My biggest concerns in conducting this search were: gathering personal sensitive information from the patron (such as current citizenship status); complexity and transparency of information available online by the respective governments; and the sheer amount of information available, in which a patron or the searcher can easily become bogged down by the sheer amount of bureaucracy. While I believe that I ultimately provided my client with the resource they was looking for, it was very easy to become inundated in the information available. The immigration process from any perspective is a complex bureaucratic tangle of forms and regulations, and representing those accurately and simply to a patron is challenging.
However, overall, I enjoyed the process of serving as an intermediary in this case. Becoming familiar with the vocabulary was initially a challenge, but knowing that it would help make the process easier for someone else made the process worthwhile.
While Google is not always the best place to begin a search, I believe it was the appropriate place to begin here, as I did not even know the website for the UK government before beginning the process. It only took some minor filtering before finding relevant and helpful search results. However, given the sheer amount of information necessary to complete this kind of process, this is a situation where I believe I might have provided too much information in an effort to cover all of the bases. My client described wanting a starting point to know where even to begin with this process. Ultimately, I believe I provided this for them, but in wanting to provide a breadth of information, it easily could have been too much, depending on the patron.