Job Discussion Forums

[samet]

Hello everyone

I am new to this Forum but have browsed the pages to acquaint myself with recent posts. I hope I am not asking redundant quesitons, but if I am, just redirect me to the threads where the information can be found. (I am, after all, only human.)

Ok, I recently went to Turkey and loved the people, the culture blah, blah... I currently work in Japan at a university but am thinking seriously about chucking in the towel here and taking up a position I was offered recently in Izmir. I have some questions tho:

1. What is the cost of living in Izmir (comparing my Turkey travel budget with living there would be like comparing watermelons to figs).

2. Do universities generally pay relocation expenses (well, at least the airfare?).

3. What is inflation like at the moment?Or, is there anywhere that I get reliable info on this?

4. If I had to set myself up in an apartment what would be my startup costs? For example, are apartments usually furnished (if so with what??).

5. Are there "contractual" things I should be aware of. (the uni will take care of the work permit stuff).

6. Any other comments?? Suggestions??

Thanks, that's about it for now.

Sam

[FGT]

Izmir's a good place to work, many teachers who come for the statutory year or two decide to stay a lot longer.
Turkey's economy has improved a lot in the last year or so. Inflation has dropped to about 28% (from 50-60% not so long ago) and the IMF is full of praise for the economic growth etc.
Furnished flats are available but are not as common as in other countries. Your idea of furnished may not match theirs! Rents probably start at about 250 million TL per month. Add on about another 50 million for bills (exc. phone).
Is your salary in TL or other? If in TL it's normal to have a salary increase part way through the year, usually March; of, say 10%. If in US or EURO then you're gambling on the exchange rate. In the past it was a definite advantage to be paid in hard currency but the last year has been bad for people paid in $. (See yahoo currency converter for graphs of various exchange rates' history).
Living costs; well, that depends on your lifestyle. You could probably exist on 1 billion TL a month, things Turkish are cheap so the more you do what the locals do the cheaper you will find it. Imported items are considered luxuries so are comparatively expensive. A disposable income of about 1.5 billion TL would give you a high standard of living by local standards.
Hope things work out for you, good luck.