Job Discussion Forums

[auntyharriet]

Do any of you know anything about the private k12 Emirates National School in Abu Dhabi. It looks likely that I will shortly be offered a position at that school to teach (a subject other than English) to young adolescent boys. Should I accept? By the way, despite my name, I'm male ... and not a tranvestite!

[Manny2]

Sorry don't actually know anything about the school but as a suggestion why don't you ask them to provide you with the contact names of some current faculty in your subject area who you could contact for job related questions. If they can't give you any names then it would seem odd to me.

[Tuttifruitti]

Like many other schools in the area, it started off really well a few years ago - good facilities, good salaries compared to most other schools in Abu Dhabi, good system of education. Unfortunately the priorities seem to have changed. I have a friend working there and the message is don't touch it. Huge problems with admin, disagreements between school admin and owners/managers, hiring and firing decisions made and changed at the drop of a hat, very little support for staff.

If you're still thinking of going, the other info I can offer is that the salary is usually between 8,000 and 12,000 dhs, depending on qualifications and experience, the school is about 25 mins drive from Abu Dhabi, single people get a one bedroom, furnished apartment in Abu Dhabi, married people 2 bed. Holidays are good: a week in November, 2 weeks in Jan, a week in April and about 6 to 7 weeks in summer.

Good luck, whatever you decide,

[Tuttifruitti]

Just a little update.

The message this time is DEFINITELY DON'T GO THERE!

Today, 7 teachers received letters telling them their services were no longer needed by the school. No reason was given and there was nothing that connected the people who were fired, even if one wanted to make a guess as to the reason. Some had worked there for a year, others for a few years.
The firing was across all school levels, so it wasn't a result of a particular principal not liking a few teachers. The principals didn't have any information about the firings, other than that they were told to do so by the school board.

These teachers had been asked in March if they wanted to stay, and had they broken their contracts, they would not have received a 'no objection letter' and would have been financially penalised.

Now, nobody is sure of their jobs and with only a few weeks to go before the summer holidays, it doesn't look good for getting jobs in other schools in the country.

Auntyharriet, if you are still thinking of taking a job there, I would strongly advise against it - there is no job security in this school.

[HamaraIamnot]

I have support the above posters warning. I had three children at the school and had to pull two of them and home school them for their own safety. The teachers are fabulous, but there are serious problems with the board of directors and the administration. At one point the school showed the promise of excellence. This is no longer the case.

[Kastanza]

First of all I agree with all the above warnings. Had an offer from this school and refused it, simply because the salary they were offering was a joke, considering where the school is located. Later on I heard from few friends about the administration situation, and read the above posts here.

The school is literally in the middle of nowhere; I kept on driving and driving and finally got there for the interview. I must admit the school itself looks better than many other private schools in Abu Dhabi, but don�t get fooled. Considering the horrible reputation its administration has, the instability of their employment terms, and its location, the 8,500 Dhs they were offering me was a joke. I have 4 years of teaching experience (2 years Abu Dhabi) and hold a B.A. and B.Ed.

So for those of you who are wondering, I would suggest just to stay away all together and don�t even waste your time to go for an interview�also heard from one of their teachers, that the principle and his wife were fired last week

[kevouze]

Hi everybody.
My girlfriend are planning to go to the UAE to teach. She was offered a position at ENS in Al Ain. They proposed her to teach KG2. The package is acceptable compared to what is offered for such propositions in the UAE. I have read the previous posts about ENS, it scares me a bit.
Do you recommend her to acccept the offer?
People from ENS have been very professional in the seletion process, nothing to complain about.
What do you think?

Thanks!

Kevin

[Manny2]

Kevin,
At the end of the day you will have to make the decision to go- from what I have read here I would be wary of going to work for them but then it may be better in Al Ain. If your girlfriend is happy with the money and you are willing to ignore the warnings of the other posters then I suppose you are going in with your eyes open so to speak. BTW do you have a job offer too ? are are you hoping to pick up a job there. I hope it all works out what ever you choose.

[carlen]

I worked for this school. All I can say is don't!
To give you some idea Dr jamal who runs the school compared teachers to onions, he said he could buy us by the sack on the international market. He went on to say the only reason we worked internationally was because our own countries did not want us. I worked in the Abu Dhabi campus but this school has a history of bad management. This year they lost all 4 principals and 80% of staff.

Its your decision but I could not wait to leave.

[kevouze]

Thanks Carlen and Manny2.
A little more information.
We are planning to go to the UAE for only a year or two. We have plans to go back to school after (Master's and PhD). We hope that our jobs in the UAE will help to save little money to pay for the tuiton fees.
We have not kids, so if things turn bad, we will simply go back to France, or look for another ESL job in Asia.
Apparently, the school of ENS is new in Al Ain, this is the first year.
We are thinking that it may be worth going for such an amount of time. I am not ignoring the warnings, I thank you all for the information.
I was offered a job at IAT (science teacher) in Al Ain (I posted a message in the IAT section of the forum). The conditions are also acceptable and people have been very professional. I am thinking of accepting too. I can break the contract at any time during the first 6 months (same for Karine).

What do you think?

Kevin

[umzakaria]

sounds good to me,go for it!I start work in the Abu Dhabi school this month,I have my eyes wide open and am prepared to take the challenge!

[carlen]

edit

[kevouze]

Thanks for all the warnings.
I will let you know how things will go.
We will keep our eyes wide open.

Kevin