Job Discussion Forums

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

For reasons best known to himself an acquaintance wishes to work in Qassim at the University there. Are they doing direct hires ? If so who is the contact ? If the jobs are through a recruiter or consultant, who should be approached ?

wfh · Joined: 10 Nov 2006 Posts: 30

Thought I'd bump this thread rather than start another.

Any info on Qassim University? I've never set foot in Saudi, but my husband's been offered a job there (non ESL) and I'm considering applying for an English teaching job there too to make the move worthwhile.

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

A very conservative area. Many find it a difficult place to live and work in.

wfh · Joined: 10 Nov 2006 Posts: 30

We're kind of resigned to that being the case if we do decide to head to KSA. We're both Muslim, and used to living in conservative places, though I wouldn't say we're particularly conservative. If the financial reward seemed good enough then we could stick it out for a year or two.

Do you know anything about the university itself?

Demigod · Joined: 15 Dec 2009 Posts: 77

Sheikh N Bake · Joined: 26 Apr 2007 Posts: 1307 Location: Dis ting of ours

Riyadh is 360 km away and after a while most westerners do not find the trip worth it unless they really need something from the specialty stores/supermarkets. Driving in Buraidah / Qassim is the worst I've seen anywhere. Anywhere. Anywhere. Of course, I've only lived in 11 countries worldwide in my 60 years, and I haven't yet experienced, oh, I dunno, Burkina Faso, the Gaza Strip, Baghdad or Tajikistan...so my comparative driving experience is incomplete.

If I were you I would only come here if the salary is way above average.

PoS2010 · Joined: 29 Mar 2010 Posts: 21 Location: rock n hard place

The Lathe of Heaven · Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2010 5:26 am Post subject:

I am currently drifting in the halls of Qassim and I do smell backed up sewage. But the PYP department finally got the elevators working. YES! This meant that photocopy machines could be taken upstairs so that we could have some ESL/EFL/EAP/ESP basic tools to work wth. I have heard rumours that the Min. Of Education or its equivalent here in Saudi have a 10 year vision that started in 2004 and will end in 2014. This vision is to prepare young Saudi minds to be able to join in dealings with the global community and become one of the superpowers in the Middle East, cognatively speaking of course. I don't think it's working. The year (2010) is 4 months gone and we have 4 more years to attain this vision. I say "we" because "we" are an integral part in this vision, which is rapidly turning into a dream.

The new English Language department that is being constructed at Qassim University is massive. It's 3-4 times greater than the PYP building and will use the latest, state of the art technology in its classes (I hope that doesn't turn out like the elevators here at PYP). So if your are thinking of Qassim Province, think also of this. Life is cheap here and you can join the 500 SAR club.

Also if you're married you get a double income and be implementing the rules of the 500 SAR club for one person only as a couple, then the second salary goes straight to the bank, DO NOT PASS GO. I'll have to admit that you might resemble Mahatma Ghandi when you leave but who cares, you've got the dough in your pocket not in your stomach.

I Like It Here. Lots Of Money, Money, Money and nowhere to spend it.

TLOH

ps.....then again I'm a bit of a masochist

7atetan · Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2010 6:48 am Post subject:

Sheikh N Bake · Joined: 26 Apr 2007 Posts: 1307 Location: Dis ting of ours

NYCESOL11211 · Joined: 22 Apr 2008 Posts: 75

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

S and B is with some military contract. U of Q pays poorly.

Sheikh N Bake · Joined: 26 Apr 2007 Posts: 1307 Location: Dis ting of ours

Yoh, you right, Scotty.

Word on the street--U of Qassim offers SR13,000. Lathe of Heaven says lots and lots of money? Maybe it's all relative. You gots to be desperate. Word, homey.

Why am I talking like a homeboy in Qassim, KSA? Damn, this place disorienting.

johnslat · Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2010 1:45 pm Post subject:

Forgive me - for some reason all this talk about "greener grass" reminds me (for some reason) of "The Unbearable Lightness of Being,:
I loved the novel, but I don't see "lightness" as being "unbearable" at all.

Oh, it's probably true that the first time you understand that your life almost certainly has no "eternal significance," it can come as quite a shock, especially if you were raised to believe otherwise.
But think of it like this: you�re walking down a path in a garden, and you're trying to pick the most beautiful flower. The problem lies in that you can walk down that path only once, and you're not permitted to turn back. So you keep walking, and walking, and every time you see a lovely flower and bend to pick it up, you notice an even more beautiful one up ahead. Then, before too long, you�ve run out of path to walk on, and so, you end up with nothing. But that's what we all end up with, anyway, no matter what we believe because:
1. You can�t turn back time; 2. There's always going to be the possibility of an even more beautiful flower farther on;

No matter what happens, it�s a story of your life. Whether your life turns out arbitrarily good or bad, in the end, that�s the story of your life.

So, don't be concerned about picking that flower. Just walk along and enjoy all the beauty. A flower, once picked, soon dies.
Embrace the lightness.

Regards,
John

Kipling · Last edited by Kipling on Wed Apr 28, 2010 2:01 pm; edited 1 time in total