Job Discussion Forums

[Splitting Hairs]

VS always says you need an MA to get a decent or university job. Is this 100% true?
Can you work for a university or college without an MA?
Is an MA from the USA different from an MA from UK or Australia?
Can you get decent jobs with a DELTA ?
How different is a DELTA from an MA?
Which is better outside of the ME - an MA or DELTA or both?

[D. Merit]

[Mia Xanthi]

I believe that the Higher Colleges of Technology will hire teachers who have a B.A. plus a DELTA. I know that it was true several years ago, but I'm not sure if their policy has changed.

[veiledsentiments]

HCT ads say that they will consider people without an MA, but it is very rare from what I have heard from friends there and what HCT teachers have posted here. The people who have managed to get in are those that have specific experience which meets their current requirements. (such as lots of experience with Arabic speakers... or teacher training.)

For those without an MA, the tertiary possibilities will normally be in the smaller private universities. (with lower pay and benefits, of course)

VS

[adorabilly]

Do you need to have an MA in order to get jobs in the UAE?

Yes/no/kinda depending on the situation.

For example you can get a job doing adjunct work at several big named colleges with a bachelors degree and a tefl cert. I think the going wage is about 180 AED an hour. So you can make about 10K aed a month.

but it does not cover housing, medical insurance, visas, or airfare and it si adjunct work. So this is a GREAT position for a spouse w/out the MA to earn some nice extra money for the family.

And there are language schools/language centers who may hire you, but again they aren't the most "desirable" positions.

I have heard with a delta and lots of experience you can get in the door at several universities... but I have also heard from folks that a lot of those Uni's are phasing out anyone w/out a MA in hand. (Mia Xanthi... I have been hearing HCT is now phasing out anyone w/out an MA in hand over the next 3 to 5 years...)

Of course if you are a certified teacher in the US/UK/AUS then you can always come here and teach grade school w/out an MA.

So do you need the MA? no. But without it you will be at a severe disadvantage when competing with people with MA's and lots of experience (which is the current economic market, who you will be competing against).

[helenl]

Adjunct work at HCT will not get you a visa either. If you want to work for the better employers who pay in full and on time, provide housing and tickets and medical and education allowance for children, get the correct paperwork to allow you work in the country and generally don't abuse you, you need the MA + experience.

HCT et al can afford to be picky - there's a lot of competition out there who do have the preferred quals - you'd be last pick and probably at the last minute and the first out the door if someone else came along. Nearly all employers have a 1 year probationary period where you can be tossed without having to give a "valid" reason - had a friend who didn't make it because she "didn't fit in holistically"

[wordsmith]

Are you talking about an MA in TESOL?

[veiledsentiments]

[mishmumkin]

There will always be some teaching gigs in the ME that take people w/o the MA. Having lived here and worked without the MA (thought loads of experience), I found finding a job w/o that degree VERY hard. I was offered a couple options, but the pay was off-the-charts low. HCT, ZU, UAEU: none of them ever offered me a job until I had the MA.

There was a time when DELTAS did get hired at HCT. Many of them were "encouraged" to go back and get their masters. Some started and completed their degrees while many others simply started. Those people still remain at HCT, though they're small in number. HCT is coming in on the low end in comparison to the starting salaries of other post-secondary institutions in the UAE. If one were to be so lucky as to get hired w/ a DELTA and loads of relevant experience, s/he could expect a much lower salary that his/her counterparts in other institutions.

[wordsmith]

Maybe that's my problem. I don't have one.

[D. Merit]