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Doing more for students together

Whoever calls with TopTaal can get Karamjit on the line. As a former student of TopTaal she knows better than anyone what it means when you speak the language.

You understand the people around you, you can easily make friends and find work. She grants that to all foreign speakers who live in the Netherlands. It also makes sure that everyone who calls is happy and professional.

'The best thing about my job is that I can help people and talk to them. Sometimes it is puzzling when a student calls who does not speak Dutch well yet and also does not speak English. ' TopTaal offered Karamjit this job in the autumn of 2017, immediately after completing the TopTaal vocational training for desk clerks. 'I went to an information evening at the municipality and I saw a flyer there. Then I signed up right away, "Karamjit says energetically as if it were the most normal thing in the world to act so quickly.

Intership

The MBO training that TopTaal offers in collaboration with the municipality Amsterdam The offer lasted ten weeks and consisted of taking classes and doing an internship. Karamjit experienced the training as quite intensive. 'We had a lot of homework. We also had very nice teachers. It wasn't difficult but it was busy, because in addition to the lessons we also had to do an internship.'

Karamjit completed the internship at TopTaal. TopTaal noticed her enthusiasm and customer-friendliness and two months after completing the training, TopTaal offered her a job as a receptionist / receptionist. TopTaal finds it important that people get a chance and therefore sets a good example by regularly employing former students. "I received a call and was offered the job. I didn't even have to apply. "

Objective

Before Karamjit started vocational training, she already spoke reasonably good Dutch and occasionally gave computer lessons to both children and the elderly as a volunteer and freelancer. In India, where Karmajit comes from, she had both an MBO diploma in electrical engineering and IT, both in English. When she followed her husband to the Netherlands in 2003, she had her diploma in electrical engineering appreciated in the Netherlands. "But I had not worked in this profession in India, so my knowledge was out of date, so it was not possible to get a job there. I had already given computer lessons to children in India, so that is why I started focusing on that as a volunteer and as a freelancer. '

I think it is special that TopTaal gives everyone the freedom to give their opinion so that they can do more for students together.

Karamjit now works two days a week as a desk employee and also works two days a week for the intake team. She would like to develop herself further, for example in the field of administration or ICT. 'I would like to do another course. The municipality Amsterdam offers such training. But because I already have a job, I don't qualify for it.' She had even offered to pay for the training herself. But that's not what the training is for.

'If you speak the language, you can work and you can meet new people. As a result, I also have Dutch friends, for example through my son's school, but also through working as a volunteer and feelancer. ' While Karamjit, when she came to the Netherlands, nobody knew anything here.
Karamjit is grateful to TopTaal for the opportunity they have given her. During the last staff day, her first for Karamjit, she fully participated. "I think it is special that TopTaal gives everyone the freedom to express their opinion so that they can do more for students together."

 

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