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Yasar University Izmir, don't do it!!
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cmann



Joined: 01 Jan 2009
Posts: 24
Location: Canada

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 8:33 am    Post subject: Yasar University Izmir, don't do it!! Reply with quote

I have just spent the most ghastly year of my life in a hell hole called Yasar University. I was enchanted by the idea of Izmir; by the sea, full of history, warm climate and friendly people, how wrong can one be, here are a few of the facts I had to learn the hard way I hope that anyone even thinking of joining Yasar will benefit from what follows and it is difficult to know where to begin:

You will be teaching in a converted factory and forced to be on campus from 8:30 am to 6:00pm, no escape you clock in and out.
The students are totally out of control and you will get 0 support from the director (who has no ELT qualifications)
Lunch which is 9 times out of ten inedible will be thrown at you like pig swill.
No medica\l coverage, just an entitlement to go to a Turkish public hospital, get there a 6am for a blood test or no deal. and filthy.
No accommodation provided, a small unfurnished apartment will cost at least 1/3rd. of you salary.
No flight reimbursement, despite what the contract says, they simply don't pay, get yourself a Turkish lawyer, like you could afford one.
A grand total of 10 working days vacation per year, oh yes and Saturdays count as a working day.
Virtually no technical support, broken down photo copier and no computers or OHP's.
If you are asked to a staff party, don't go they will hit you up for $25 for the privilege of attending.
Up to 30 contact hours per week with classes of 30 +.
No teacher resources,the library is a joke.
Management thinks nothing of shouting at you in front of the students.
Most of the administration can hardly speak English and will NEVER give you an answer to any query.
Living is very very expensive.
The city is freezing in winter and stinking hot in summer, your heat/ air con bills will run around $350 per month.
Apart from one sq. kilometer by the port which is pretty the rest of the dump looks like Bulgaria in the 70's.
Unlike other Turks the people are the most unfriendly I have ever met, an no one but no one speaks anything but Turkish, even if they can.
After a year of working in vile conditions you will despite scrimping most likely leave in debt.
The backbiting from the local teachers is beyond belief.
Oh they do pay on time.

I don't know if these posts ever really help, but if even one person thinks twice before joining Yasar University then it was worth posting.
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crazycatlady



Joined: 24 May 2010
Posts: 46
Location: suffocating under a pile of cats

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 10:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

you could probably get a job at a better school if you improved your own english grammar and punctuation.
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Sashadroogie



Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 10:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

crazycatlady wrote:
you could probably get a job at a better school if you improved your own english grammar and punctuation.


Ha! I love it!
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eclectic



Joined: 09 Nov 2006
Posts: 1122

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 11:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
Lunch which is 9 times out of ten inedible will be thrown at you like pig swill.


I've eaten at the best and worst Turkish places (albeit in New Jersey and New York) for 45 years. And I've YET to find any of it inedible. Pls. tell us IN DETAIL SO THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT IT, exactly what---EXACTLY WHAT---these lunches consisted of.
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crazycatlady



Joined: 24 May 2010
Posts: 46
Location: suffocating under a pile of cats

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 12:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

i'm sure that your complaints about the school are justified. but your post is just an emotional rant. (1) this is not really helpful to your fellow forum members, and (2) it makes us wonder how credible you are -- you don't sound or write like a serious, professional english teacher.

you want to persuade others not to seek work at yasar university. you can best do this by listing specific reasons in a calm, professional tone without colorful exaggeration (e.g. 'thrown at you like pig swill').
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AGoodStory



Joined: 26 Feb 2010
Posts: 738

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 1:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
you could probably get a job at a better school if you improved your own english grammar and punctuation.

Not much help to anyone.

Quote:
you don't sound or write like a serious, professional english teacher. . .

Perhaps, perhaps not, but he does sound like an eager, starry-eyed beginner who started off with high hopes and optimism and got badly beaten up for his romantic view of what teaching in Turkey would be like--and for not tempering his hopes with caution and some solid research. Once he has spent some time licking his wounds, he may be able to assess new possibilities more realistically in the light of this experience. (Or not.) Wink

Quote:
you can best do this by listing specific reasons in a calm, professional tone without colorful exaggeration

Well, sure. . . most of us view matter-of-fact, less dramatic description as having more credibility. Which the OP may very well be able to do, now that he's vented.
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crazycatlady



Joined: 24 May 2010
Posts: 46
Location: suffocating under a pile of cats

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 2:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

and to give his post even more credibility, he should use standard english correctly. it's hard to take the post seriously when the grammar and punctuation are worse than many high school students'. this may not be the right career path for someone who knows so little of his subject matter.
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Otterman Ollie



Joined: 23 Feb 2004
Posts: 1067
Location: South Western Turkey

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 3:54 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi CCL, I think you need to look past the glaring errors that you mentioned and focus more on the content. In your mind because of this deficiency, you have become perhaps a tad overly judgemental.
The tone of the OP's does have more than a ring of truth in it, however I would say in the defense of the port of Izmir it is one of the better cities to work in. I am very surprised to hear about the food but the rest does not really come as a surprise. I believe there is more than a grain of truth in the post and other forum members would do well to pay heed to the comments. Not many employers here offer a "package" these days.
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crazycatlady



Joined: 24 May 2010
Posts: 46
Location: suffocating under a pile of cats

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 4:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

as i said before, i'm sure that the claims made are true, and that the place is crap. i'm only suggesting that attention to tone and the rudiments of standard english would better serve the writer's purpose, which is to be credible and persuasive.
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cmann



Joined: 01 Jan 2009
Posts: 24
Location: Canada

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 5:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I only wanted to warn others off. Fine if you want to turn this into a grammar rant, so be it. I'm out of there and thats that.
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AGoodStory



Joined: 26 Feb 2010
Posts: 738

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 10:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

CCL: There is absolutely nothing to be gained by criticizing or attacking another poster for his/her writing ability. It is unhelpful at best, and serves to foment ill will and resentment at worst. To do so repeatedly can seriously derail a thread--it is much more helpful to focus on the content, as Ollie has so kindly suggested.
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crazycatlady



Joined: 24 May 2010
Posts: 46
Location: suffocating under a pile of cats

PostPosted: Thu Jul 29, 2010 10:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

yes, perhaps i should focus less on the grammar/punctuation problems of the original post. however, my main point was that calmly expressed details describing what exactly makes yasar suck so badly would persuade more people to avoid the place.

they are no doubt crap and deserve a well-written ass kicking so that they will have problems hiring good teachers in the future.
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AGoodStory



Joined: 26 Feb 2010
Posts: 738

PostPosted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 12:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
I love it!


Last edited by AGoodStory on Fri Jul 30, 2010 3:52 am; edited 1 time in total
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crazycatlady



Joined: 24 May 2010
Posts: 46
Location: suffocating under a pile of cats

PostPosted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 1:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

if you're suggesting that there's more to teaching english than perfect grammar and punctuation, i will certainly not argue with you. that has nothing to do with my beef with the original poster. he is not a student. he is a teacher. a teacher should know her/his subject area.

i will reiterate my original point: good writing skills would have made the post more persuasive, which was the op's intention. the original post in its current form suggests that the op is overly emotional and was perhaps fired for incompetence. as i believe that this is NOT the case, and that the op has valid reasons for quitting, why let bad writing distort the truth?

i have a friend looking to work in izmir and would be very interested in getting some hard facts i can pass on.
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eclectic



Joined: 09 Nov 2006
Posts: 1122

PostPosted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 3:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
There is absolutely nothing to be gained by criticizing or attacking another poster for his/her writing ability.


True, but attacking lunches is unacceptable. Lunch is key to any day, be it at noon or half-past, and I for one was not about to let that despicable display of gastronomic terrorism slide.
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