February 26, 2023
Stories
Morouj Yunis, a 24-year-old woman from Mosul, Iraq, always wanted to become a teacher. After graduating from the College of Education, she applied to many places, but unfortunately, all the responses were negative. Nevertheless, Morouj was able to fulfill her dream of becoming a teacher after participating in the On-the-Job Training project organized by Caritas Czech Republic in Iraq. Thanks to the training, Morouj is more assertive and no longer afraid of interacting with people.
With no experience, it’s challenging to find a job in Iraq
Morouj was a student before the so-called ISIS attacked Mosul. She tried to finish high school to get accepted at university. After ISIS attacked Mosul in 2014, Morouj and her four siblings were stuck in the city with their parents. Although she could not attend school at that period, she used her time to help her mother with housework and read books from their home library.
After three years of ISIS rule over Mosul, Morouj was able to return to school and fulfill her dream of earning a bachelor’s degree from the College of Education. Unfortunately, despite her efforts to find a job opportunity as a teacher after graduation, she got none.
The opportunity was just around the corner
Morouj had almost lost hope of finding a job until she learned about Caritas Czech Republic’s On-The-Job Training project in Mosul on our social media platforms. “I was surprised to see a project that gives the opportunity for internship, including teaching graduates to develop work skills,” said Morouj. Shortly after applying to the programme, she got accepted into a job training as a teacher in a kindergarten in Mosul.
Morouj started her job training as a teacher on December 2022, and after two months of the training, the kindergarten offered her a permanent job. “I was a pretty shy person and couldn’t get a chance to practice my work in university because classes were online; thus, I lacked teaching skills,” said Morouj.
Muruj’s life changed completely after she started the training and got many benefits from this project despite the financial income. She overcame her fears, adapted to work discipline, developed tools of communication with children, and learned about workplace behaviour. “I feel much stronger and anyone who sees me, including my family members, says that I have changed positively and encourages me to continue working,” said Morouj.
She advises young graduates not to lose hope because opportunities will come and not to be scared of challenges because they will eventually find a way to overcome them, which will make them stronger.
