Job Discussion Forums

[ghost]

Folks:

Does anyone work for Interlink Al-Yamamah College in Riyadh, and how satisfied are you with the teaching and conditions there?

Interlink would not be my first choice in Saudi, and I have been 'shortlisted' for another Institution which appears to be a better deal for me, but I would like to keep Interlink on the back burner, just in case the other offers don't pan out.

One thing of concern: Annual leave is around 45 days per year plus two separate one week breaks. That seems short for the amount of money on offer. Annual leave is one of the things which is really important for me - overriding salary, and I would rather be paid a bit less but get more leave.

Salary, also does not appear to be very high and is in the range of $34,000 to $38,000 per annum.

Work hours: They seem rather long, compared with many gigs. They ship you in by bus for a 7:30am start, and then you are 'released' at around 4pm, to be bussed back to your residence, which is about 20km away in an expat suburb of Riyadh. You actually start work at 8am, but the admin wants you there 30 minutes before. You get 1 hour for lunch.

Contact hours per week are 20 hours per week, or 4 hours per day. The rest of the time is devoted to prep and meetings.

Housing: The housing units are far from the campus, which is about 20km out of Riyadh on one of those highways, typical in the region. You have to rely on transport (provided) to get to and from work. There is no local bus service, only taxis. The housing is not on a compound but basically in an open neighborhood, where mainly ex pats live. A security firm goes for the ride to and from work, for the obvious safety reaons, inherent in a position in that hot spot.

The good thing that Interlink has is their unorthodox approach to education, in which the use of conventional textbooks is discouraged, and teachers and students are encouraged to find other 'materials' for learning purposes. This means, presumably, that the teacher should be creative, and knowledgeable and willing to use resources (the Internet?).

Semesters: An academic year consists of two semesters and one eight week summer term. The first semester begins in September, the second (usually) in January, and the summer term in June.

Faculty are expected to arrive two weeks before the start of the semester.

The whole package I received from Interlink was about 40 pages long, including the extensive application form and referee checks! That is a record, in my book for an application process. Most places are just a few pages long. The information sheet was about 20 pages long! Everything is dissected and analysed, right down to minutae.

Other Institutions in Saudi which offer more attractive (on paper) packages and more leave, appear to be less onerous in their requirements.

The guy answering the e-mails (Dr Shahbaz), on the other hand, appears to be very up front and honest in the way he answers questions.

Based on the package, I think there are better places to work for in the region, but any feedback you might have would be good, for the record.

Ghost in Korea

[veiledsentiments]

From what I have heard from people who work there, everything you have been told is accurate. They are organized and up front about things. The major beef seems to be the short vacations for most people.

But, since you seem to not like most of the significant details (salary, housing, vacations, teaching hours), it appears that this is not a good choice for you.

VS