May 27th

Finding Meaningful Work, and Work with Meaning

“ Ask, and it will be given to you seek, and you will find knock and the door will be opened to you.” ( Matthew 7:7)

As a person with an intellectual disability, finding meaningful employment and utilizing the unique gifts God has given me can be deeply frustrating. The job search often feels like a constant battle against rigid barriers—most notably, the lack of a traditional post-secondary degree.

Discovering fulfilling work is a challenge I have struggled with for a while. Frequently, I find a promising position that perfectly captures my interest, only to discover it requires a full degree that I do not hold. However, I am incredibly fortunate to have a Certificate of Completion from the University of Calgary and a Certificate of Recognition from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT). SAIT went to great lengths to ensure I was fully integrated into their Business Administration program, rather than being a student drifting without a specific academic anchor, which makes building meaningful connections incredibly difficult.

My time in the Business program at SAIT allowed me to develop practical, ethical business skills. In one key project, I collaborated closely with a team to manage a store chain within a business simulation. Together, we learned the high stakes of team decision-making—discovering how strategic choices could either drive our business forward or cause it to plummet, while our classmates’ businesses climbed the leaderboard. Additionally, I mastered the fundamental rules of accounting, learning how to accurately track profits and financial transactions as they move from one account to the next.

Thanks to this hands-on training at SAIT, I have acquired the precise skills needed to perform financial tasks and track expenditures using modern accounting software. Furthermore, SAIT helped me build upon the strong research foundations I first developed at the University of Calgary. I learned to craft comprehensive corporate reports, such as analyzing whether a company should scale back operations in a specific nation due to political decisions that drive up manufacturing and production costs for the masses.

This brings me back to the hurdle I mentioned at the beginning: I possess valuable post-secondary education and practical skills, but lacking a formal degree still closes the door to higher positions. While some companies allow you to apply by demonstrating your skills directly, a candidate without a degree is often left at an unfair disadvantage.

Yet, to close, I return to that beautiful verse from the Gospel of Matthew. It has truly come to life for me, because Mennonite Church Alberta has opened its doors and allowed me to fully utilize the skills, dedication, and knowledge I worked so hard to acquire during my post-secondary journey.

~Austin is the Co-Treasurer for MCA~