An AMES client from Egypt has been supported to launch a career in IT after becoming confused about his future in Australia.
Androu Samuel Lowis arrived in Australia in February 2020 as a refugee following religious issues in his homeland.
As a Coptic Christian, Androu faced persecution as a member of a marginalised community.
Since 2011 hundreds of Egyptian Copts have been killed in sectarian clashes, and many homes, churches and businesses have been destroyed.
“When I first arrived, everything was new to me and my English was not good enough to communicate. The first few months were really tough, but now things are much easier,” Androu said.
“I was very lucky to be supported by AMES. I had a case manager in Eman Hana who spoke Arabic and helped me a lot. We were met at the airport by AMES and that made things so easy,” he said.
Androu was supported to find accommodation by the AMES Housing Team and provided with household goods. He was supported to enrol in and complete English courses at Box Hill TAFE.
Having studied accounting and web development in Egypt and worked as a project manager, he wanted to pursue a similar career in Australia. He is currently studying a Cert IV in IT Networking at RMIT.
“When I complete the course, I would like to look for a placement or internship to gain some local experience. Alternatively, I will go on and do a diploma while also volunteering as an IT professional to gain local experience,” Androu said.
Eman referred Androu to AMES’ IPP program, which is designed to fast track refugees into employment. He was supported by AMES Mentoring & Employer Engagement Specialist Drue Vickery.
Androu said the course was instrumental in him finding a clear pathway to achieving his employment goals.
“The IPP was the best course. It helped me so much. At the start, I didn’t know the process I should follow or how to apply for courses. Drue helped me look at what was appropriate for me and he helped me to apply,” Androu said.
“It was not just courses where the IPP was useful, it taught me about all sorts of things – where to find the food I needed, transport and services like Centrelink,” he said.
Eman said that when Androu arrived, he was supported to develop a pathway plan to achieve his goals.
“We identified that we needed to improve Androu’s English and then find a path for him to re-establish his career in IT,” Eman said.