Tamar, Upwardly Global’s longest-serving career coach, believes each story matters
Nearly 500 immigrants and refugees have rebuilt their careers in the United States thanks to Tamar’s guidance. As a Senior Employment Services Lead at Upwardly Global, she has spent over a decade empowering internationally trained professionals to navigate the U.S. job market — particularly in the highly regulated healthcare field.
But her influence extends beyond these individuals — Tamar has played a key role in shaping the organization’s approach to professional coaching, ensuring job seekers receive tailored, industry-specific support. As a colleague once said, “Tamar is Upwardly Global.”
Starting at Upwardly Global
Before joining Upwardly Global, Tamar spent nearly eight years as a career counselor at higher education institutions in Chicago. By 2013, she knew her previous role was not a good fit — it was time for a change.
“I walked out of [my previous role] thinking, ‘I want to find a job where I can help good people get good jobs,’” she remembers.
Soon after, she came across a job listing — Employment Services Advisor (ESA) at Upwardly Global, a nonprofit organization that helps professional immigrants and refugees rebuild their careers in the United States.
“It was a six-week temp job to cover someone who was going on their sabbatical,” Tamar recalls. “I was just intrigued and delighted.”
At the time, there was only one ESA in the Chicago region, and they needed another. Tamar quickly proved to be a perfect fit for the role, and she has now been with Upwardly Global for nearly 12 years.
“I just feel so lucky that six weeks has turned into much longer,” she says. “And as we’ve grown and changed, our mission, I really believe, has stayed so front and center. It’s been so exciting to work with great people, but also to meet such amazing job seekers along the journey.”
Building expertise in healthcare
Early at Upwardly Global, Tamar discovered a deep interest in helping internationally trained healthcare professionals — a field known for its complex regulations and unique challenges.
For international medical graduates (IMGs), the path to practicing in the U.S. involves navigating an intricate web of licensing requirements, credential evaluations, and examinations. More often than not, it costs thousands of dollars and requires multiple years of dedication.
“From the beginning, I loved working with healthcare professionals, and healthcare is crazy regulated — for all the reasons, we know — in the U.S.,” she says. “It piqued my interest, and having both a background as a professional counselor and in public policy, it’s the perfect mix.”
By 2020, when Upwardly Global grew large enough to organize its coaches by industry, known as “Communities of Practice” (CoPs), Tamar was a natural choice to lead the healthcare CoP. She had already spent years training other coaches focused on the healthcare field.
Her expertise didn’t stop with one-on-one coaching. Since 2022, she has worked with policymakers in Illinois to shape and implement alternative licensing processes for IMGs, ensuring more qualified professionals can enter the U.S. healthcare system.
“I haven’t wanted to venture into roles that wouldn’t allow me to have one–on–one contact with job seekers. I mean, that informs my work and all of what I do,” Tamar says. “But I feel very lucky that I’ve been able to find leadership, program, partnership work along the way.”
Job seekers’ stories lead the way
While Tamar’s impact is broad, her work is always grounded in the individual stories of the job seekers she supports. Their experiences continually shape and refine her coaching approach.
“I remember, early on, I worked with this Iraqi doctor who had applied for residency a bunch of times, and I think he had depression, and it was just really hard,” she says. When they practiced for interviews, his answers were flat and uninspired.
“I told him, ‘If you don’t bring positivity, if you don’t connect in your interview, you won’t match. If you don’t believe you can do it, you certainly won’t,’” she says. “So, that was one of the very strong moments when I realized the power of things like interview practice.”
Her insights led her to develop a structured program that connects aspiring medical professionals with volunteers for extensive interview practice — helping to bridge the cultural gap and increase their chances of success.
A legacy of impact
For Tamar, the work is personal. Each job seeker she meets is more than their work history — they are real people with real dreams. This belief fuels her commitment to helping immigrants and refugees reclaim their professional identities.
“First and foremost, what we bring to people is just a sense that they’re not alone,” says Tamar. “I can’t make it easier, but I can be here with you during the journey.”
Her legacy at Upwardly Global extends beyond her nearly 500 job placements or the programs she’s built. It lives on in the lives of the job seekers who have reentered the healthcare profession and now serve their communities, as well as the policies that open doors for internationally trained talent.
As Upwardly Global continues to grow, Tamar remains a guiding force — ensuring that every job seeker’s story is heard and their potential is never overlooked.
Her vision for the future includes expanding structured mentorship opportunities, advocating for fair and inclusive hiring practices, and continuing to break down barriers for internationally trained professionals — because every story matters, and everyone deserves a chance to thrive.