Job Discussion Forums

nat_capelli_rossi · Joined: 01 Sep 2005 Posts: 17 Location: Toronto

Hello,

I'm a 23-yr old Canadian female, recent Uni grad...wondering a/b Doga College in Istanbul. Is anyone familiar w/ it? Also, what is housing in Turkey like? Anything else I should consider before going??? Thanks!

Mark Loyd · Joined: 13 Sep 2005 Posts: 517

It used to have a reasonable reputation but it has recently been sold to some religous family who seem to be dismantling it piece by piece. Teachers are owed money and have been treated very badly.

Sorry

molly farquharson · Joined: 16 Jun 2004 Posts: 839 Location: istanbul

On the contrary, Doga Koleji has been totally revamped. I saw it just before it was taken over and it was being run into the ground. Now it has a beautiful campus, with a huge garden, a horse center, farm animals, sports fields, etc. The owner owns English Time and all the associated schools. He is personally religious, but he does not impose it on people who work there. I have seen an incredible change in it in the past couple of years, all to the better. Re the pay etc I don't have any information on that, though I have heard it is on the low side.

nat_capelli_rossi · Joined: 01 Sep 2005 Posts: 17 Location: Toronto

I've read other things a/b the school on other sites, and on most accounts, ppl have not recommended the school. I'm glad I did some research before signing a contract...

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397

A friend started there a couple of weeks ago. He seems happy so far. He is working at the Beykoz campus, which is beautiful. The other campus is near Bostanci.

whynotme · Joined: 07 Nov 2004 Posts: 728 Location: istanbul

i know someone who started there this year and she says its fine.

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397

^ if a parent is happy, that is a good sign.

Mark Loyd · Joined: 13 Sep 2005 Posts: 517

The parents are always the last to know.

calsimsek · Joined: 15 Jul 2004 Posts: 775 Location: Ist Turkey

Someone asked the same question some time ago.

As I said then, the school looks like a good set up and they look as if they take care of their staff. However when I was offered a job,( june 2004 ) the pay was very low. If you agree to teach kids then you should not accept anything less than 1500 $ a month plus housing.

ugurgazanker · Joined: 17 May 2006 Posts: 13

the parent does not know what to look for. doga is a school with no curriculum and inexperienced teachers. worse, the school invests very little money in resources even though the profits are very high. doga is a cash cow with very poor educational standards. public school education is far better than doga.

mbd26 · Joined: 31 May 2006 Posts: 36 Location: Istanbul

If you head over to www.internationalschoolsreview.com you won't find a single Turkish school with positive comments from teachers. I've bee here three years and seen SEVERAL north american (yes, usually Canadian) 23-24 year-olds break down and pull a runner (break contract) in their first year. Just FYI, a tough place to begin a career.

almuze · Joined: 25 Oct 2004 Posts: 125

Doga Koleji- Don't Do It!
(this is from an ESL teacher stand point, the kids there might be very happy and well educated, but as for teachers- JUST SAY NO)
Seriously, I usually consider myself a pretty easy going person, but I think the english program at Doga is all show. Like, they are putting up all the bells and whistles and really have no (well, maybe one) serious teachers.
A friend of mine who DID take the offer (I did not) and taught with Doga this past year says "it is like a prison" and she barely makes it home in time to put her 2 kids to bed (and she lives really close to work)
Ugurgazanker said he (are you a she?) had not heard of foriegners being asked to spend thier weekends in shopping malls recruiting new sts, but I WAS.
in all 3 (yes, count them, 3) contract offers they made me and then reneged on, spending Sats "and some sundays" in shopping malls was part of the deal.

Plus. thier pay is low, especially given the number of hours they want (after school in-service mtgs. every day of the week)

Plus, unless you are actually at the Beykoz campus, the horses are more to impress the parents than anything else. They load the kids up on a bus in Bostanci, drive to Beykoz (say, 45min at least) everyone stands in line for one 5 minutes turn around the track on the horse, and then they are on the bus again, I say - Could this teaching time somehow be put to better, more child centered use? perhaps?

Anyway. Yes, there are all kinds of twists and turns, and many schools will try to screw you, some will succeed, But just SAY NO to Doga.

thrifty · Joined: 25 Apr 2006 Posts: 1665 Location: chip van

ugurgazanker · Joined: 17 May 2006 Posts: 13

almuze is correct. doga lies to teachers and parents about the school. at doga, the doga concept (pi in the sky) is sold to the teachers and the parents but the concept has nothing to do with the actual conditions at the school. there is no educational system at doga. there are no systems. it is sad and shameful.

the beykoz campus may look nice from the outside, but take a look in the classrooms. the classrooms are very small and they lack basic educational resources.

doga is a mirage! the closer you get the more you realize there is nothing substantial about it. basically, doga is made of PR and lies (high concept). whoever collects the profits does not redistribute any of it toward the educational part of the business.

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397