Participant adjusting a hard hat at a construction site

Medical professional holding a stethoscope in a clinic

Woman standing at a whiteboard presenting to colleagues

Man in professional attire shaking hands confidently

Serving 14 communities across the metro area

#ReadyToWork

They already have the skills.
We build the bridge.

Partner With Us See Their Stories

Yusuf, Civil Engineer → Site Supervisor

Amara, Physician → Medical Assistant

Linh, Educator → Training Coordinator

Dmitri, Accountant → Financial Analyst

Placement Rate

84%

within 90 days of program completion

Employer Retention

91%

at 6 months, across all sectors

Scroll to begin

Fatima smiling in her nursing scrubs on her first day at work

Arrival: March 2023

Fatima, from Mogadishu

Registered Nurse, 8 years experience

The Ordinary World

"I had eight years of nursing behind me. Here, my license meant nothing. I felt invisible."
"Waxaan lahaa siddeed sano oo khibrad. Halkan, shaadigeygii waxba macno lahayn. Waxaan dareemayay inaan la muuqan."

Fatima arrived in Minneapolis in March 2023 with her nursing credentials from Somalia, a pediatric specialty, and zero recognition from the state licensing board. For eleven months she worked overnight shifts at a grocery warehouse while attending ESL classes at the community college.

Then her caseworker at Lutheran Social Services referred her to Belong. Fourteen weeks later, she passed her NCLEX-RN. Today she's a charge nurse at Hennepin Healthcare.

Charge Nurse, Hennepin Healthcare — 14 weeks from referral

The Hero's Journey

Assessment to first paycheck.
Every step, documented.

The cards brighten as the journey progresses — because that's exactly what happens.

Two people at a table reviewing documents together during an assessment session

Stage 1

Skills Assessment

Every participant completes a 3-hour credential mapping session. We translate 22 professions into U.S. equivalents.

"They looked at my engineering degree and said: this is equivalent to a PE license candidate. For the first time, someone saw what I had built."
"Они посмотрели на мой диплом и сказали: это эквивалент кандидата на лицензию PE."
— in Russian

Alexei Volkov

Civil Engineer → CAD Designer, Mortenson Construction

Credential Recognition

Professions mapped

from construction to healthcare to finance

Stage 2

Language Coaching

Industry-specific ESL. Not "the cat sat on the mat" — workplace vocabulary, email etiquette, and performance review language.

"I learned how to say 'I disagree' without losing my job. In my country, you never question a supervisor. Here, they call it 'feedback.'"
"আমি শিখেছিলাম কীভাবে 'আমি একমত নই' বলতে হয় চাকরি না হারিয়ে।"
— in Bengali

Priya Chowdhury

Pharmacist → Pharmacy Tech Lead, Walgreens

Language Reach

340+

Participants coached

across 18 languages since 2021

Quick Referral

Know someone ready?

Refer a participant in under 60 seconds. We follow up within 24 hours.

Refer now

Two people conducting a mock job interview in a professional setting

Stage 3

Mock Interviews

Six practice rounds with volunteer HR managers from partner employers. Every session recorded and reviewed.

"After the third mock interview, I stopped translating my answers in my head first. The words just came."
"بعد المقابلة التجريبية الثالثة، توقفت عن ترجمة إجاباتي في ذهني أولاً."
— in Arabic

Omar Hassan

IT Manager → Systems Analyst, Allina Health

Placement

84%

Job placement rate

within 90 days of completing the program

Person smiling broadly in professional attire on their first day of work

Stage 4 — The Arrival

First Paycheck

The moment the journey completes — and the next one begins. 91% of our graduates are still employed at 6 months.

BELONG

Proof of Work

Numbers that prove
the bridge holds.

Independent audit data, 2023–2025. Methodology available on request.

84%

Job Placement Rate

within 90 days

91%

Employer Retention

at 6 months

340+

Participants Served

since 2021

Languages Supported

with native coaches

Employer Partners

across 6 sectors

14wks

Average Cohort Length

from assessment to offer

Trusted by employers across the metro

Hennepin HealthcareHealthcare

Mortenson ConstructionConstruction

Allina HealthHealthcare

WalgreensPharmacy

CargillAgriculture

Amazon FulfillmentLogistics

Fairview HealthHealthcare

US FoodsDistribution

"We've hired 23 Belong graduates in the last two years. Their retention rate is 14 points higher than our general hire cohort. I don't need to understand why — I just need to keep the pipeline open."

Rachel Oduya

VP of Human Resources, Hennepin Healthcare

Build the Pipeline

Partner With Us

Whether you're a caseworker managing 40 active cases, an HR director with 30 open roles, or a funder looking for measurable outcomes — Belong has a path for you.

🤝

For Caseworkers

Wrap-around partner for language, credentials, and job placement. We report back within 48 hours of every milestone.

🏭

For Employers

A pre-vetted talent pipeline in healthcare, manufacturing, and logistics. We do the credential work. You do the hiring.

🎓

For ESL Coordinators

Industry-specific language curriculum. We co-design with your team and share participant progress data.

Tell us about your work

Takes less than 3 minutes. No commitment required.

Caseworker and participant sitting together reviewing documents in a community center

"I referred Khalid on a Tuesday. By Thursday, Belong had called him, done his assessment, and enrolled him. I've never seen anything move that fast."
Sonia Reyes — Caseworker, International Institute of Minnesota

60-Second Referral

Refer a Participant

Just three fields. We follow up within 24 hours — directly with the participant, and with a status update back to you.