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New Visa Requirements at Universities
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Sheikennotstirred



Joined: 30 Sep 2011
Posts: 28
Location: Saudi Arabia

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 10:12 pm    Post subject: New Visa Requirements at Universities Reply with quote

So, the latest on the street is that work visas are being denied unless the teacher has a degree in English or TEFL etc. An unrelated degree + CELTA + experience are no longer enough, even if the university is happy with them.

Can anyone corroborate or refute this?
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nickelgoat



Joined: 26 Jan 2006
Posts: 207
Location: Where in the world is nickelgoat?

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 10:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

.....

Last edited by nickelgoat on Fri Sep 13, 2013 4:35 am; edited 1 time in total
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rdobbs98



Joined: 08 Oct 2010
Posts: 236

PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2012 1:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It is not true. I don't have an English nor a TEFL degree. I have a BS Public Administration/Political Science, MBA, and MA International Relations. But have military TEFL, another TEFL certificate, TEYL, and 3 years teaching TEFL in a public school plus one year in a private school and got a university job.
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343

PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2012 5:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Unlikely. More than half of the teachers I knew had degrees in "other subjects" raning from Law to Microbiology.
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scarlie



Joined: 28 Apr 2010
Posts: 24

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 4:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is a new requirement as of July 2012. If a person already has their iqama, no problem. But it is a problem for those who are applying for Employment visas. I've also heard that people have been refused because their undergraduate degree doesn't match their Masters. For example, if you have a degree in Economics and then get a Masters in TESOL, they may not accept it. (But I'm not positive on this.)
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cmp45



Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Posts: 1475
Location: KSA

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 4:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

scarlie wrote:
This is a new requirement as of July 2012. If a person already has their iqama, no problem. But it is a problem for those who are applying for Employment visas. I've also heard that people have been refused because their undergraduate degree doesn't match their Masters. For example, if you have a degree in Economics and then get a Masters in TESOL, they may not accept it. (But I'm not positive on this.)


Hmmmn...I also heard that it was going to rain this weekend in Riyadh, but I'm not positive on this... Laughing
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Sheikennotstirred



Joined: 30 Sep 2011
Posts: 28
Location: Saudi Arabia

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 10:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have now heard from two different people who have confirmed that they had visas rejectected over the last couple of weeks, and that the reason given by the embassies was because they didn't have English degrees.

These are guys with experience, CELTAs, who have worked in Saudi before on work visas and iqamas and have proper NOCs etc.

Obviously it doesn't apply to the past or people already in the kingdom.

But it would be interesting to find out whether this is a new policy that is "trickling down", or whether it's just a couple of embassies being capricious at a local level.
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Sirens of Cyprus



Joined: 21 Mar 2007
Posts: 255

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 2:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank God! I am so sick of having to compete with the CELTA crowd.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhqqAUh1VPU
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Anacita



Joined: 22 Sep 2012
Posts: 25
Location: west coast, U.S.A.

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 9:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

When you all speak of visas being denied, are you talking about the Saudi Embassy in the U.S. or the U.K. etc. denying employment visas to ESL teachers?
OR
are you referring to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which issues a visa document when it receives a request from a Saudi employer for a particular individual?
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scot47



Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 9:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Et tant a moi - apres moi le deluge !

My degree in Political Science was deffo not in English - but I think I was a reasonably good EFL teacher - probably because I was a linguist by aptitude - and had acquitred competence in Latin and German !


Last edited by scot47 on Sun Oct 07, 2012 10:53 am; edited 1 time in total
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johnslat



Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 10:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dear scot47,

"My degree in Political Science . . . "

OMG - and all these years, I'd thought you were a peer. Very Happy

Regards,
John
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scarlie



Joined: 28 Apr 2010
Posts: 24

PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2012 11:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm talking about the Saudi embassies in Canada and the US refusing to issue Employment visas to applicants whose degrees don't match their job titles.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world

PostPosted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 4:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

scarlie wrote:
I've also heard that people have been refused because their undergraduate degree doesn't match their Masters. For example, if you have a degree in Economics and then get a Masters in TESOL, they may not accept it. (But I'm not positive on this.)

This makes no sense. For employment visa purposes, you're only required to submit the (one) most relevant degree and not every academic credential you possess.

But are you referring to potential employers rejecting applicants because of their degree majors? If so, also be aware that masters degrees obtained via distance learning aren't accepted by many Saudi employers. This might just be the case for some applicants.
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Deeman15



Joined: 30 Apr 2011
Posts: 50

PostPosted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 4:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I can also confirm this new rule. Teachers are being rejected by the Saudi Embassy for not having a degree which is related to the position they apply for on their employment visa application. A lot of people have been sent their passports back and been denied. The majority have been EFLers with majors other than English or Linguistics.
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nomad soul



Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world

PostPosted: Thu Oct 04, 2012 4:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Deeman15 wrote:
I can also confirm this new rule. Teachers are being rejected by the Saudi Embassy for not having a degree which is related to the position they apply for on their employment visa application. A lot of people have been sent their passports back and been denied. The majority have been EFLers with majors other than English or Linguistics.

If this is truly the situation, then it's a major problem between the employer and newly-hired teacher and not with the embassy.

I see that many of the latest TEFL job ads for the Kingdom indicate both a relevant BA and MA (i.e., no unrelated BAs even if the applicant holds an appropriate MA). This will be a headache for recruiters trying to fill spots because it would greatly shrink the pool of viable candidates. In fact, as a career changer, I wouldn't qualify despite having a relevant masters. Duh.
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