Job Discussion Forums

[craig49]

hello,
i am considering applying to the UAE. I am canadian with a masters in linguistics. I have only taught at university level in asia and saudi arabia. the thing is that i have never worked past 1pm. in asia the universities where i worked never required staff to stay past 1pm and my positions in saudi arabia were the same. it wasn't so much that teachers weren't required to work past 1pm but rather that classes were always in the morning and teachers could leave at 1pm if they wanted which i always did.
i have gotten used to finishing work at 1pm and use the rest of the day to workout or play sports, relax, read books, watch tv or films, and go out with friends.
my question is this: in the UAE, are there universities that will allow staff to be finished by 1pm. i know i sound lazy wanting only a 5 hour work day, but i just don't see a lot of value in waiting around till 5pm to leave work and not make any time to do the things that i want to do. what about about HCT or ZU, what does the typical workday look like there? thanks for your replies.

[adorabilly]

AT HCT you won't last long.

You are usually teaching 20 contact hours, and expected to be on campus for about 30 hours a week MINIMUM at most branches.

It is incredibly lazy IMHO (and I"m sure that many teachers in the UAE woudl LOVE to have it that easy.)

If you are currently able to leave at 1pm, then keep that job.

[veiledsentiments]

HCT and ZU will mostly require you to be on campus for 30-40 hours... depending on the branch... and then stick you in an open plan cubicle warren full of ringing phones, clattering printers, and chattering students and teachers. I could never get a thing done, so did my preps and corrections at home in the evening.

There are some small private colleges in Oman that let you go home at 1:00, usually after a 7:30 start, but 2-3 days a week, you have to come back and teach from 4-6:00 or later.

The fact is that there are very few Middle East employers who allow you to go home when you want to. Some universities in Saudi make you clock in and out now. Every year the norm pushes closer and closer to 40 hours. They consider us to the same as factory workers or secretaries.

VS

[helenl]

Don't worry, at HCT they'll have you scheduled for the useless meetings 2 - 3 times per week usually at 3 or 4 pm in the afternoon - so you can't skive off.

[veiledsentiments]

... too true helen...

Which is why I wanted to give a number over the 30 that adorabilly mentioned. So perhaps I should have said 30-45?

What about UAEU? I suspect it depends on department there.

VS

[ckhl]

I know of a couple of tertiary institutions where you can go home at 3 pm no questions asked.

[veiledsentiments]

But, normally you have to be there by 7:30 in the morning... which would makes a 37.5 hour week. They love those early starts in the Gulf.

I don't think our OP is going to find many places with a 25 hour week.

VS

[Iamherebecause]

UAEU? Content teachers 12 hours a week approx plus research commitment and evilly scheduled meetings. Foundation programme 16 - 18 hours teaching which might be scheduled in 4 hour blocks or with gaps. Luck of the draw/who you know. But much less presenteeism than at HCT.

[BrownSauce]

Oh, balls to the lot of you! I worked for six years at a certain college in the UAE and rarely did more than 8 - 2 each day. I prepped and marked at home, and only stayed 'late' in the afternoon if there were meetings or other events that couldn't be avoided.

And did my students suffer? Never!

Only the irredeemable brown-nosers and those shrinking violets scared witless of losing their precious little job did the full day there. Most of us (including the management) knew the real score, and laughed our pants off at those who feared their movements were being monitored!

[Noor]

If you are as fearless as you suggest, perhaps you wouldn't mind replying with the name of this "certain school" as well as the dates of your tenure.

[veiledsentiments]

[helenl]

I doubt if the poster was at one of the women's campuses - if only for the fact his fellow EFL'rs would have dobbed him in.

And how did he get a 6 hour schedule for 6 years when even those colleges that run 1 shift have classes from 8-4pm? Sounds like he had wasta with Academic Services.

[GlobalDawg]

My sense of the OP's situation is the differences between teaching in the UAE on the one hand and teaching at the tertiary level in Saudi or Asia. In my experience (I've taught in all three regions) the UAE holds higher expectations with regard to time on tasks. In Asian academic communities such as in Taiwan, Korea and Japan, the status of the lecturer is revered--customarily they don't spend more than 12 to 15 hours a week in the classroom. In Saudi, for the most part, everyone is trying to go home as early as possible and it has only been in recent years--with higher enrollment--that scheduling of classes has begun to extend into the late afternoon and evening hours. The OP quite possibly taught in a remote area of Saudi where the enrollment is low and therefore short days are common for the majority. Even if he taught in a big city, there are other things to consider. For example, I had one collleague who taught labs only with the first class starting at 7AM. Daily, he was headed to the parking lot by 11:10AM until others started complaining which prompted admin to enforce office hours. That only held him up by an additional forty-five minutes and he was out of the parking lot by noon.

In response to the OP's question:

[Iamherebecause]

[helenl]

Except the OP specifically mentioned HCT and ZU - neither of which is recognized for leniency towards staff putting in 5 - 6 hour days.