Job Discussion Forums

[trapezius]

Hello naelle,

1) The hiring conditions seem very good. That salary is towards the high end in academia in this country, especially if you get the SR. 16,000. I would recommend staying in the furnished housing provided by the university. The 'End of Service Benefit' (ESB) is a mandatory payout given to employees at the end of their service with a particular employer. It is calculated based on the last monthly salary as such: 1/2 monthly salary for the first 5 years of service, and a full monthly salary for each year served after the first 5 years.

2) I would advise against joining a college which has just started. It will be highly chaotic and unorganized, and they will most probably dump everything on you. Since your father is in Djeddah, why don't you apply to some places there? There are 2 women's private colleges, plus another private college with separate men's and women's campuses. They all offer business administration and related subjects. I would suggest you establish contact with them and stop by for informal interviews with them (or formal interviews if you can arrange them in the next few days). I will email you the names and websites of the colleges.

3) I would be happy to help you with the interview next Monday, as I am in Djeddah! (will have to get wife's permission first! ). Or, my wife could help you. Aside from your accent, which none of us know, I think your English is more than adequate to teach in English. Far better than that of Arab (usually Egyptian) professors, who not only have terrible accents, but also terrible grammar.

4) I don't know much about Riyadh, but I hear it is very strict there, at least comparing to Djeddah and the Eastern Province. Someone else can comment on the social life of expats there. Djeddah is not bad in that regards. Just too humid and dirty.

5) You will have to establish contact with the big established government universities if you want to do research. Even then, the opportunities will be limited or non-existent. Research by women is pretty much unheard of, as there aren't many local women with PhDs. There is also Prince Sultan University, a private university in Riyadh. Why don't you apply there as well? And Prince Mohammed University, another private university, in Khobar (East).

Good luck!

[scot47]

Dont listen to the troll who is called sheikradlinrant. He is here to alarm and upset the Righteous and the Godly. I fear him not. "Eine feste Burg ist unser Gott."

[sheikh radlinrol]

[Cleopatra]

[sheikh radlinrol]

[Sheikh N Bake]

Das ist ja Wahnsinn.

[sheikh radlinrol]

[trapezius]

naelle,

Are you going into academia for a short time just for some quick bucks, or are you going to stay in academia? I was thinking, with a PhD in economics, you can get a good job in a bank. And in fact, get paid more, with a much higher ceiling. If you do end up working in Saudi or any Gulf Arab country, I suggest you look for positions in banks in the region.

I don't have exact numbers, but I do know that Westerners working as 'Chief Economist' in Gulf Arab banks make a lot of money, in the 100,000s per month (yes, you read that right). Sure, you will start off as a Junior Economist, but you can reach the top in about 20 years. If you stay in academia, in 20 years your salary will go from 15,000 a month to 25,000 a month, and then stay there. Sure, it is excellent money, but a lot less than you could be making with your credentials.

Of course, if you love teaching and want to be in academia, more power to you!

[darhell]

Anyone contemplating a job with Dar Al Uloom Colleges consider yourself warned. The list is long, but I will only stick to the most important ones.
1. They do not honor their contract.
2. We are all working illegally at this point having arrived in September 08. We have some illegal stamp in our passport that does not exist because Dar Al Uloom is "above the law". This has caused extreme headaches for all employees at some point or another. Trying to leave the country for vacation costs blood, sweat, and tears.
3. The probation period is just that. You may be fired at any second. So far the firings that have taken place have been immoral, unjustified, and immoral. They tell the person at the end of the day, not to come back tomorrow. Did that person do something so terrible to warrant such a firing? No, maybe one of the princesses complained about them, and thats it, goodbye. That person is then stranded in Saudi Arabia, trying to figure out what they are supposed to do, with no response or communication from Human Resources.
4. The teacher coordinator is highly unqualified, backstabbing, and evil if I do say so from my own experiences with her. She holds a teaching certificate and a TEFL certificate. She does not have the people skills to develop her staff, nor the personality to lead. She is looking for dirt and reporting to the Admin. She did observations of all of us, there was no feedback or development as a result. They were typed as formal observations and submitted to someone somewhere, and we never saw them and I am assuming we never will. When a certain grammar teacher had students complain (oh wait, they didnt complain, the coordinator went to them to ask if they liked their teacher) the coordinator went that teacher and said the students didnt understand your lesson, you might get fired for that. No development or assistance offered. Just threats threats threats.

I am not going to put more here. I just want you to be warned. I highly suggest you DO NOT WORK for this organization, do not believe their lying recruiter who defines the problems as teething problems, it is far more than that. I have worked with organizations with "teething problems" before, and this is not that, this organization is toxic from the top-down. They will never overcome their teething problems while appointing unqualified and rude personell (HR and PYP coordinator). And the good sign of a top administrator is that they are able to see strengths in people and appoint them accordingly, so I would say that the admin is just as bad and certainly are bad judges of character. The teachers here arent even flaunting fake degrees like at PSU, they actually were hired WITH THE KNOWLEDGE THEY DO NOT HAVE DEGREES. Since September 2008 over 6 teachers have left (not to mention 10 Saudi admin assistants) for greener pastures, some escaping in the night with the assistance of their embassy. And in all this, money problems, admin problems, we are supposed to teach without any curriculum or standards..... GOOD TIMES.

[scot47]

'We have some illegal stamp in our passport that does not exist because Dar Al Uloom is "above the law". '

Can you explain the "illegal stamp in your passport" ? Do you have an Igama ? (Residence Permit) ?