Travailleuses sociales diplômées à l’étranger : les enjeux du transfert de leurs connaissances au contexte de pratique montréalais
Abstract Social workers are part of a growing group of health and social services professionals who choose to immigrate to Quebec to live and pursue their careers. The recognition of diplomas obtained abroad and obtaining a license to practice issued by the Ordre des travailleurs sociaux et des thérapeutes conjugaux et familiaux du Québec are required in order to practice social work in Quebec. Once these milestones are met, the immigrant social workers begin their practice in a new professional and cultural universe, using the knowledge they acquired in their country of origin. From data obtained in the framework of a pan-Canadian qualitative research on the experience of immigrant social workers regarding their occupational adaptation (Pullen Sansfaçon, Brown and Graham, SSHRC 2011-2012, SSHRC 2012-2015), this master's thesis (by articles) explores the challenges inherent in the transfer of knowledge, professional experience and values obtained abroad, within a Quebec work context. The experience of 26 immigrant social workers, who graduated abroad and are currently working in the greater Montreal area, has been investigated, and has revealed both more and less transferable aspects of social work. The mission and values of social work, professional experience, theoretical knowledge and clinical skills have expanded beyond national borders. On the other hand, the discourse of participants indicates that the knowledge of laws, social policies, organizational procedures and language are transferred less easily, which can create gaps in a novel work setting relative to where the original social work training was obtained. In this context, the training and support of management, as well as the support of co-workers are both central to promoting the acquisition of local knowledge. Keywords : social work, immigration, professional, knowledge transfer, professional adaptation, Quebec
immigration Social work professional knowledge transfer professional adaptation