Job Discussion Forums

aspirant1 · Joined: 30 Aug 2006 Posts: 1

Hi,
I'm considering moving to the Middle East for a couple of years with my family. I'm a qualified EFL teacher (with an MA in Applied Linguistics) and few years experience.
My main concern is my three children aged 10, 8 and 5. Is there a good quality education for kids of these ages in countries like UAE etc.?
I know a bit about Mid-Eastern culture and would probably take an Arabic class as soon as I got there.

Wife is also qualified to teach but in primary school, mabye she can get a job in a school - to pay for the kids fees if they don't provide it.

I'm just considering options

Any advice?
Thanking you in advance

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

I'd say that you are at the point of just spending some time reading. There is a wealth of knowledge on this board, and the search works quite well.

There are good international schools in almost all of the ME countries, but they are not cheap. With an MA and experience, you should be able to find an employer who at least covers a portion of those costs - few, if any, would cover the costs for 3 kids. Again this is a topic that has been discussed quite a bit on the boards. You are correct that if your wife can get a job teaching in one of the better schools, your kids may be able to attend as part of her compensation.

Also search on learning Arabic... a number of threads on that.

Getting answers here usually requires quite specific questions.

VS

Wigwam · Joined: 27 Dec 2004 Posts: 93 Location: Abu Dhabi

Hi
In terms of kids and education in Abu Dhabi there are two good American and two good British Schools. Both are very expensive. There are other less expensive schools. Depending on your employer you may get enough to cover two of the kids, the third you would need to supplement. Qatar maybe different and apart from two military contracts in Saudi Arabia, educational allowances are not enough these days.
Bringing up a young family in the UAE, especially in Abu Dhabi, is very safe and the community is quite strong and supportive. Your wife would easily find work as a primary teacher which would help to supplement your income. Accommodation is through the roof so a contract must either supply a reasonable apartment (furnished) or provide you with an allowance of not less than 75000 Dirhams if not more. You should not consider a salary of less than 10,000 dirhams.
Getting a job with an MA puts you near the top of the pile depending on your experience

sharko · Joined: 25 Jul 2006 Posts: 29

They are looking for staff at Kuwait's GUST (www.gust.edu.kw). Probably, with your qualifications, you could look at a salary of around 1200 KWD (3240 USD) including housing allowance, tax free, plus children's school fees and yearly air tickets for your entire family.

I think I also saw something open at the American University of Kuwait...

But as VS says, reading previous threads provide a wealth of information.

Good luck!

kuberkat · Joined: 03 Jun 2005 Posts: 358 Location: Oman

DO keep an eye out for jobs that cover children's education, since good schools with international standards do cost an arm and a leg per kid. Unfortunately this is one of the perks that seems to be increasingly hard to come by in the UAE. This forum, as well as those for individual Gulf countries, should answer many of your questions in this respect.

NadiaK · Joined: 27 Jul 2006 Posts: 206

Yes, there is decent Western-style education in the major cities of the UAE (and pretty much any other big city in the region, afaik), but ditto what other posters have said - it can be *very* expensive. It's cheaper in the smaller emirates such as Fujairah and RAK, but there is very little choice of schools in these places and the schools that there are do not suit every child.

Good luck!