Ottawa Community Immigrant Services Organization (OCISO) - Ottawa, Ontario

Ahmed Halim Guerraoui

Excellent

Ryan N

There is an extreme lack of professionalism in their services. They teach people about multiculturalism, but they themselves do not really understand what intercultural competencies are to practice.

And to clients to note that: please don't blame the receptionists, most of them are unpaid volunteers. They are not treated with respect or provided with proper training for their job. The lack of professionalism is because of the organisation/leadership/supervision act.

Наталія Белік

Immense thanks to Julia for her help. She assisted us a lot with the documents. Without her, we wouldn't have managed. She is very smart and knowledgeable in all aspects related to documents. We are immensely grateful to her. Thanks to such an organization for existing. Thank you.

InfinityDz

I was made fun of because I was lost in my job search and wasn't sure what I wanted to do, when the reason I reached out was to discuss this to begin with. Good advice maybe, but condescending tone.

Marina Gomá

After a really negative experience with a dismissive receptionist, it was heartening to get a call from an OCISO counsellor, Yalda. From the moment Yalda was able to assist my case, she inmediately made contact with me to hear more details about my situation. Yalda was really reassuring and was able to offer me possible avenues of action during our first conversation. Yalda was also extremely professional in terms of acknowledging not being sure about certain areas of immigration law, and refering me to other professionals who might. Yalda followed up with me several times via phone to check if there were any updates and reassure me of the complex and frustrating nature of my situation which, if you are a migrant struggling with status like me, is extremely appreciated. Lastly, Yalda went out of her way to connect me with an immigration lawyer who could see me on a short-term notice. Yalda also accompanied me during the meeting with such lawyer, which helped me feel more comfortable and accompanied in my process.

Harite Mohamed sadek

Moving to Ottawa from Morocco alone was challenging but Imane at OCISO made all the difference. Her kindness, support and guidance gave me hope and made my transition so much easier. Thank you Imane for your incredible help. I highly recommend her to anyone in need of support.

Diane N

I went to OCISO Wellington office today Nov 08, 2023 at 14h30 looking for help and information.
The guy at the reception was mean and impatient. I had a couple of questions to ask about the resettlement and youth program. The guy before I even finished speaking told me the youth program is not here, he rushed to write the address on a piece of paper and went on his phone without even asking if I had any other questions. Then I tried to ask what services are specifically offered by the office on Wellington street to see if he can help me with my next questions, he replied to me very dry that the youth program is not here we are resettlement, and rushed to his personal mobile phone. I had to just leave. The woman who used to be there was very nice, she would try to understand you and connect you with other staff who can even help you more.

Erzhena Baiandaeva

They said that invited me to appointment, bit still didn't. I wrote them twice, and nothing