Job Discussion Forums

[al-Californian]

So now I have my TESOL MA and a few years of experience teaching adults. I'm Californian(definitely not a poser). Where in the ME would you say comes closest to the laid back multi-cultural coastal vibe that I am from?


Peace

[Dedicated]

Istanbul, Turkey

[johnslat]

Dear al-Californian,

Congratulations - but those "few years of experience teaching adults" came before you got the MA, right? So, don't expect them to be counted as far as salary goes. And most Mid-East places like to see a few years AFTER you get the MA, anyway.

It would be quite a stretch to compare ANYPLACE in the Mideast to the "Califormia life-style" (with the barely possible exception of Lebanon, where are are virtually no EFL jobs). But the "golden rule" applies: The worse the place, the better the salary - and vice versa.

Oman is nice, but the salaries are low. I'd suggest either the UAE or Qatar (though the latter is even less "Californian" that Oman/the UAE).

Regards,
John

P.S. Dear Dedicated,

Darn - I never think of Turkey as being "Middle Eastern." But again, the salaries aren't as good as the UAE or Qatar.

[Dedicated]

I don't think the OP asked about salaries. He was more concerned with

[johnslat]

Dear Dedicated,

I know: "It would be quite a stretch to compare ANYPLACE in the Mideast to the "Califormia life-style"

But have you ever known anyone in EFL who wasn't concerned about the salary ?

Regards,
John

[al-Californian]

[al-Californian]

[johnslat]

Dear al-Californian,

Yup, I believe I would (not counting Jewish, of course ). As anywhere else, you're probably going to encounter some racism no matter WHERE you go (it's unfortunately, universal - or at least global )

But Omani are, I'd say, more "laid-back" than any others on the peninsula.

I've visited Turkey but wasn't there long enough to measure "racist sentiment." But I suspect it'd be OK, too (unless, of course, you're Greek

Regards,
John

[al-Californian]

[scot47]

The life style you describe might be available in Tel Aviv.

[bulgogiboy]

Dear OP,

I don't quite consider Turkey to be the true ME, it's kind of borderline for me, but for the broader region it may be the most 'liberal' option for you. Here goes:

Istanbul. I spent around a year and a half in the west of Turkey, including Istanbul. In Istanbul you have the chance to get a job with an ok basic salary (around US$1500 approx) and then supplement it with private lessons, of which there are a fair few available (Istanbul is a megacity, after all). Once you begin to understand written Turkish you can google a bunch of free websites and post adverts for private lessons online. I still get people contacting me from these, even after several years out of Turkey!

Izmir is also nice, famed for its beautiful blonde ladies, although I've heard there isn't such a choice of good employers there. Might be worth a search though.

I think the main problem for you, coming from California, will be accepting that the Turkish concept of 'liberal' doesn't equate with the Californian one. Female 'honor' is still a bit of an issue, even sometimes in the most seemingly liberal households, so dating can be problematic. Sneaking around behind the backs of parents, like errant schoolchildren, having to pretend butter wouldn't melt in your mouth, gets old very quickly for a western man, especially once you are out of your 20s. Having said that, Turkey provides lots of gorgeous and charming ladies to sneak around with, if you so desire.

There are also quite strong taboos, some of them enforced by criminal law, about certain subjects (e.g. criticising Ataturk, recognising the Armenian Genocide, Kurdish rights, and even criticising Islam), and having your freedom of speech stifled, even in small ways, will be something you'll need to get used to. Again, having said that, there's absolutely nowhere in the ME you will be able to express yourself as openly as you can back in the US. This is especially true on the subject of religion.

(On a broader note, as a TEFL teacher, and someone who's travelled fairly widely across the whole world, I've been forced to accept, with sadness, that the world generally is pretty darn conservative. The narrow-minded and intolerant conservatives in the world firmly outnumber open-minded, tolerant liberals. This goes doubly so for the ME.)


By the way, racism against the people you would think to be "the usual suspects" for Turks (i.e. Greeks and Armenians) was actually pretty thin on the ground. However, there was, and still is, a rapidly growing anti-Israeli sentiment (made infinitely worse by the 'Mavi Marmara' incident, no doubt). Aside from that, fear/strong curiosity over black people was present too. So if you are Jewish and/or black, you may have some issues, but I still wouldn't worry too much.