Job Discussion Forums

[JK01]

VS Thanks for clearing that up,

What a peculiar decision, those in Saudi are unable to access the site to comment on the Saudi section. Wow, Dave's must definitely be doing something right if big brother has stepped in.

Is this act an indication of the joys of Saudi life we should expect if we decide to migrate???

Oh BTW, forgive me as I forgot.... I wish you all a Happy New Year! I hope it brings happiness and prosperity to you and your loved ones.

JK

[veiledsentiments]

Happy New Year to you too... and..

[johnslat]

Dear JK,

If you are hired by different organizations, you will, in effect, be undergoing a "trial separation" during your entire stay in Saudi. A married man who goes to Saudi without his family goes on "single status." and is usually provided with "single status" accommodation. Same with a married woman.
The only way I could see it working would be if you both were hired by organizations that, rather than providing housing, gave you housing allowances. Even then, I can foresee a host of problems that could so easily arise. For example, the place that hires you as "married with family" is going to put your wife/children on your visa, which means she won't be able to legally get her own visa. But if they hire you as "single status," then keeping it quiet that your family is with you (with your wife on a separate visa) is almost certainly going to cause problems sooner or later.

If only, say, you are hired and you bring your wife and children with you, with the intention of your wife's looking for work in country, well, should she find a job, she'll certainly get a bad deal. In country hires get much less money and no benefits.


Another correction - it was scot47 who arrived in the early 70s; I first arrived in 1980. But yes, Saudi WAS a very different place even back then, different, but, of course, also the same.

As for the IPA, I found it a very good place to work for; however, so much depends on who the Directors are (of both the Men's and Women's English Language Center.) I don't know about the Women's Branch nowadays, but I've gotten reports that the newish Director of the Men's ELC is causing a lot of disruption. Many people seem to be unhappy there these days.
That's the bad news - the good news is that Directors of the Men's ELC seldom last long. In my nineteen years, I went through eight different directors (and one of them upset the average by lasting a whole five years.) I was fortunate - all of mine were NOT directors who were determined to "make their mark" by being "new brooms" who occasioned "clean sweeps" (for no other reason than to try to impress their superiors.) But from what I've been hearing, this new guy is making all sorts of needless perturbation.
But, as I said, he probably won't be around too long - especially if his actions are producing poor results (as I'm sure they are.)
So, I'd say that you could do worse (maybe a LOT worse) than trying to get both yourself and your wife hired out-of-country as teachers at the IPA (but what qualifications/experience do you have?)

Even better, though, might be to follow VS's advice and look at the UAE (cash) or Oman (culture.)
Saudi can be very tough, especially on women and children.
Regards,
John

[JK01]

Dear John,

Thank you for the taking the time to write back. I really appreciate the information, there is definitely a lot for us to consider.

As both you and VS have recommended we will definitely consider the other options.

regards

JK

[saharastars]

Hi
Just wanted to agree with everything John said. It can be very, very hard on family life. A lot of couples and families who moved out here in September, will be leaving in summer. Many will no longer be together.

Life is too short...to be (potentially) miserable. Go forth and seek happiness.

[trapezius]

[sheikh yer money-maker]

The rigors of living in Saudi wii make or break a marriage.

[JK01]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJjlVCbM9mU&feature=related

I found this video as a result of a search on Hail, I can't read the Arabic, can anyone confirm if it relates to Hail?

Is this common? I read on other forums that Saudi students were well-mannered??

[veiledsentiments]

[sheikh yer money-maker]

What kind of idiot teacher puts his hands on a student? Truly, there's a scraping of the barrel bottom!

[Skyblue2]

[Bebsi]

First of all, let me say that my own experiences of the Saudi classroom have been nothing like this. This type of scene is not typical, and I stand by my assertion in other threads that Saudi students are overwhelmingly courteous and polite. Motivation may not always be as high as we would like, but the issue here has nothing to do with motivation, and is all about behavior. Yes, there are disruptive students, but that is different to violence. In any case, it is a much bigger problem in schools than in universities.

Regarding the video itself, it would be interesting to see what happened before the camera started rolling. I could be wrong, but it really looks to me like the student in this clip was walking, albeit very reluctantly, towards the door when the teacher grabbed him to usher him along. I'm sorry if I appear unsympathetic to a fellow teacher, but this type of action constitutes assault, and would be an immediate sacking offence in most establishments. We do not touch a student, plain and simple. Occasionally, a student may become so infuriating that you want to, but as professionals it remains our responsibility to desist. There are other ways of dealing with bad behavior.

Also, it appears that the other students immediately moved to try to calm things down, not exacerbate things. I wonder what the outcome of that particular incident was? There are references to UoH, certainly, but the Google translation of the comments was indecipherable.