Job Discussion Forums

[mountainkat]

Are jobs in Egypt generally reserved for native speakers, or do non-native speakers have a chance of breaking into the ESL market?

[mishmumkin]

This is a hard question to answer w/o knowing your credentials, experience, and nationality. The ESL market is extremely limited in Egypt to begin with. Most jobs come in the form of class and subject teachers working in English-medium language and international schools. If you were Egyptian with fluent English, you might have a shot if you were either educated in a western English-speaking country or already living in Egypt. In the case of the latter, they would offer you a much crappier contract than your western counterparts.

If you are not an Egyptian (or not from another Arabic-speaking country) fluent in English, your chances go down even more. I've certainly met a few non-native teachers who were bilingual and perhaps already living in Egypt when they applied for teaching jobs, making them very attractive candidates as the employers didn't have to pay for airplane tickets, accommodation, etc. On the whole, however, if you are not Egyptian, chances of getting these jobs is relatively slim. Hope that helps.