Job Discussion Forums

[andre818]

I got a job offer in Izmit for 2000 TL a month. Plus 300 TL allowance for housing. But I don't know anything about Izmit and if I can live off of 2000 TL a month. Besides being a native English speaker, I am also fluent in Turkish. I am originally from Armenia. Do you guys know if Armenians are welcomed to Turkey or are they just like Armenians in Armenia? For all of you who don't know Armenia or Armenians, we are neighbors of Turkey and have a very bad history together. "The Infamous Armenian Genocide" claim made by Armenians. Anyways just wanted to know if there is anyone out there that has an idea about the situation.

[Englishteach]

You might want to keep some things a secret, especially the Armenian topic. If you want to know more about this.. do some research at www.turkishdailynews.com and search the issue and read comments. Good luck.

[Dedicated]

Andre818,

I think Englishteach has a point - do not mention the Armenian connection, and even that you speak Turkish (the students would be surprised if you can follow their asides!).

However, certainly in Istanbul, only 100km west of Izmit, there are approximately 70,000 Armenians with very distinct religious, cultural, social and educational institutions and media, including 17 schools and 3 newspapers, and two sports clubs - Sislispor and Taksimspor.

Izmit is hilly, hot and humid in the summer, but rated as the best in Turkey for HR and quality of life. Izmit has about 20 of the 100 largest enterprises in Turkey, including Ford motors, paper and cement factories.
It is a huge industrial centre and port with an oil refinery too. You can easily pick up private lessons with aspiring businessmen.

Culturally, there are Roman and Byzantine ruins....

Good luck!

[coffeespoonman]

I'm not perhaps the best to comment on this, having never lived in Izmit, but I've never heard anyone (other than Dedicated, above), say anything good about it. It's industrial and apparently quite depressing. Perhaps I'm wrong, and I hope I am, but I'd do some research about the area before you accept a job there. On the plus side, you can easily live off that amount and probably save a bit as well (unless you make frequent trips to Istanbul).

About the Armenian thing... Well, it's not a problem to be Armenian here, as long as you don't talk about the "issues". However, it IS a problem to be anything other than a "native speaker". Don't tell your students you're Armenian. You're just "insert native speaking nationality here" (I assume American because of the huge armo population there). When they learn that you speak Turkish, tell them you dated a Turkish girl for a long time, or that you lived in a Turkish neighborhood growing up, or that you studied it all throughout university.

[ryan1981]

For what it�s worth, the Armenians I know that travel to Turkey certainly do not advertise their nationality while there.