Job Discussion Forums

substance · Joined: 15 Dec 2003 Posts: 38

Wondering if anyone can give me some info on current positions in UAE for a native speaker with an MA in Applied Linguistics (TEFL) and a Cambridge CELTA.

I've got three M's in my bag (Male, Married with 3 kids, Muslim), and have got some experiece teaching in KSA - Jubail and Dammam - albeit only 6 months.

If there are any posts that would suit someone like me, could someone send me a PM?

Cheers!

Sub

Ka-CHING! · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 102

You might try checking the job board.

younggeorge · Joined: 15 Apr 2005 Posts: 350 Location: UAE

Check the websites of the major employers:-

Higher Colleges of Technology: http://www.hct.ac.ae

United Arab Emirates University: http://www.uaeu.ac.ae

Zayed Iniversity: http://www.zu.ac.ae

Your qualifications and experience sound appropriate to all 3. However, there's only a slim chance of any of them needing someone before next August. The main recruiting season is March/April.

Good luck.

substance · Joined: 15 Dec 2003 Posts: 38

^^^

Thanks, much appreciated.

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

Just a small addition to YG's post... if you only have 6 months of teaching experience, that will be a problem with many of the employers listed.

Hopefully you have more experience other than just the 6 months in KSA. Most of them are looking for a minimum of 3 years total preferably after the MA.

VS

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2005 4:54 am Post subject:

On the information you give us I'd assume you'd make the "to be considered" pile of CVs. But as a prospective employer I'd immediately be asking the "why only 6 months in Saudi" question. Employers don't look kindly on "jumping ship" before a contract is up no matter how bad the situation. And if you did "have to leave" they are most likely going to want to see a preferably long period of stable employment (teaching EFL) after that time.

As for being Male, Married, and Moslem, I'm not sure that any one of these is automatically an advantage in the hiring process.

abufletcher · Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2005 5:01 am Post subject:

Oh. And how old are the kids? Be aware that international schools in the UAE (and the Gulf in general) cost more per child per year than a year at a state college in the US. If you've got three school aged children you'll need to check out the employers policy on child education subsidies. All indications are that places in the UAE are looking at (or are already) slashing this benefit.

substance · Joined: 15 Dec 2003 Posts: 38

OK... I finished my CELTA in 2003 and landed a job in KSA September that year. However I was kind of duped into believing that there would be an opportunity to bring my wife and three children (aged 7 and 5 [twins]) after a month or so, but this was not to be. The company only offered temporary contracts lasting between 3 and 6 months, and teachers were on permanent business visas.

To cut a long story short, my contract expired, I came back to the UK, studied an MA in App. Ling (TEFL), and now here I am!

Oh yeah, the three M's thing was because I cut and pasted this post from my post in the Saudi section... with a few edits. I understand that being a Muslim in the UAE means nothing, but in KSA it applies for those seeking work in Makkah or Medinah.

abufletcher · Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2005 5:32 am Post subject:

Sounds like you have all the right answers to the sorts of questions employers might have. You should go ahead and apply to all the major UAE universities. Ideally, they like to hired people with several years of EFL teaching post MA but they always end up needing people. I started out on single-status contract in Saudi (I had just gotten married about 8 months earlier). That company folded and on my way out of the Kingdom, I stopped off at Kuwait University for an interview and was hired on the spot.

Once you get your foot in the door in the Gulf it's pretty easy to just keep finding that next job. On being Moslem, I don't think I'd make any particular effort to make this known (when applying for jobs in the UAE or Oman, or Kuwait) unless someone asks. Depending on the attitudes of whoever is making the hiring decisions that may or may not work in your favor. For more than a year while living in Kuwait, I wore only the Kuwaiti disdasha to work (and around town) and while most Kuwaitis were very positive about this, I found that it made some of my fellow expats uncomfortable.

DesertStar · Joined: 02 Oct 2005 Posts: 80 Location: UAE Oasis

substance · Joined: 15 Dec 2003 Posts: 38

Thanks for the advice Abu Fletcher.... I'll send off a few applications and see where they get me. Other than that I guess I'd better get some experience either here in the UK or via working with a private school for low wages!

BTW are you a Muslim yourself?

Don't worry Desert Star, my first name is Nicholas! I'm a covert Muslim...

DesertStar · Joined: 02 Oct 2005 Posts: 80 Location: UAE Oasis

abufletcher · Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2005 10:23 am Post subject:

substance · Joined: 15 Dec 2003 Posts: 38

haha

Desert Star.... what made you think I'm white? Is Nicholas a white name? I'm actually mixed race (Jamican/English)... and with my brown skin I might not get as much 'props' from certain employers as a white person would. Who knows eh?

Abu Fletcher... that made me laugh... reason being is that in KSA I taught a group of middle aged guys at SAFCO in Dammam. One of them was called Fareed, and when asked about the English translation of his name he told us it was 'special'... so I said... 'oh... like... unique?'... and with that they all burst into laughter. From then on the whole group called him unique... and it wasn't until the last day that I finally found out why it was so funny. I asked a saudi friend of mine what 'unique' was close to in Arabic, and the reply was 'you know... it means... when a man f*!@s a woman....!'.... I thought to myself 'Oh my God, this was going on in front of my nose for 9 weeks and I didn't even realise it!'.... haha

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

Don't feel alone in that one. Most teachers encounter this type of thing eventually. I was fortunate to have had a Palestinian woman friend who explained most of the pitfalls before I went. But, you can't completely avoid the use of common English words like unique, tease, zip, etc... Laughing

I worked with a teacher whose first name was Barbara... which is apparently very similar to the slang for booger. (may only be in Egyptian dialect...) But, it does take awhile for university age kids to get beyond the snickering stage.

VS