Job Discussion Forums

Bin Shafted · Joined: 08 Mar 2005 Posts: 52

Does anyone out there have any thoughts, good or bad, on working for Damman Community College?

I would be particularly interested to hear from past and current employees about working conditons, accommodation, social life (if any!) facilities (for families and singles) and any other genaral info would be well appreciated.

As my name suggests I've been burned before and job security takes favor over high pay and inshallahs.

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

They have a link with KFUPM and working conditions are okay. Kosher.....................eeeee......I mean Halal !

Bin Shafted · Joined: 08 Mar 2005 Posts: 52

Thanks Scot47, nice to hear something slightly positive schools in K.S.A.

Any other guys out there like to add a comment?

The Ghutra Man · Joined: 10 Mar 2005 Posts: 3 Location: Saudi Arabia

DCC and KFUPM are just the pits. They pay awfully low salaries and treat you with complete disrespect. I would advice anyone to stay away from these places. I worked for DCC through al falak last year before saying enough.

From what I understand all the teachers at DCC are being forced to move over to direct hire contracts with the univeristy at considerably lower salaries than what they are on now. a typical teacher on a current contract would be making approx. 15000 riyals but they are now being asked to accept a salary that is about 4-5000 less. Ok, you may argue that they give you accommodation allowance, but with 1500 riyals a month you don't get very far. Twisted Evil

I'm glad I did a runner last year and moved to a school that respects a qualified and experienced teacher.

Be careful about these people at the UNI and DCC they really are lying Twisted Evil

.

Bin Shafted · Joined: 08 Mar 2005 Posts: 52

had heard that conditions had improved through direct hire and that Al Falak, while offering more in terms of salary took about 5000SAR away in visa processing fees and so on..........there's been a lot of negative posting about that mob.

Is DDC really that bad? The little I've read about them on the dis. board has been more positive than negative.

The main thing for me is getting paid on time and in my experience if your working for a "private" school conditons are much worse and you're in danger of being inshallahed out of the kingdom (usually minus salary and with about 1% of what you were promised actually delivered).

Do you know anything about the accommo?

What's this fine institution you're working for now?

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

If you want top whack, you should go elswhere, like to the Merchants of Death at BAE Systems or SALTS or Lockheed Martin.

If you want a job where you will be treated as a professional and given good holidays then KFUPM is not bad. No experience of DCC.

Of course strange characters are found here - like everywhere in the GCC !

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

So who is this new arrival on the scene "Ghutra Man" ? Is this the infamous Abdullah Macdonald, revert to Islam ? Or Jones the Imam from Merthyr ?

I think we should be told. Perhaps he is a special persona created solely to slag off DCC !?

Stephen Jones · Joined: 21 Feb 2003 Posts: 4124

To the best of my knowledge you get more from Al-Falak than a direct hire only because the holiday pay and other benefits are included. I think if you make the calculation the direct hire salary and the Al-falak pay come out the same over 12 months. Correct me if I'm wrong.

If Gutra man is to be believed DCC is now paying two months salary as housing allowance instead of providing accommodation. The figure he quoted should be enough to get you a decent apartment in the area, but the problem is that it wouldn't be furnished and you would find yourself with having to fork out money the first year just to buy A/Cs and decent furniture. You'd need to get more details on this though.

DCC will be a bureaucracy like most government institutions and for all the oil in Saudi the wheels of bureacracy don't turn any smoother. Also nobody is actually likely to be in a situation to make a promise, unlike the case with a wholly privately owned operation.

In general if you are thinking of staying three years or longer I would think DCC is Ok. Remember to pack a lot of patience though - you will need it. But people such as Scot 47 and myself who work for Saudi government institutions aren't that discontented.

Bin Shafted · Joined: 08 Mar 2005 Posts: 52

Thank you Mr Jones, solid objective advice as usual.

Here's a man who doesn't have to hide behind a ridiculous pseudonym like the rest of us.

I'll be in it for the long run, there's no point in going to KSA for less than 3 years if you're serious about making and saving money. It's not the kind of place you go to sop up the culture is it?

As for "The Ghutra Man", we're still waiting to hear about:

"a school that respects a qualified and experienced teacher"

Seriously you wouldn't want the rest of us making the same mistake as you taking up the DDC offer would you? Fill us in on the alternatives please.

waltertoo · Joined: 03 Jan 2005 Posts: 22 Location: Saudi Arabia

Bullets are flying at KFUPM. A driver did not stop his car at the checkpoint just before the American consulate, Aramco and KFUPM last Sunday at 6PM.. In addition to shooting out two tires of the offender, the guards also put a bullet through the front of a car going the opposite direct driver by an ESL teacher. The bullet ended up in his dashboard.

Cheers.

Walter

scot47 · Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343

Don't drive through roadblocks in KSA where there are armed police. They might shoot at you.

Having said that I have not heard about this alleged incident from any other source.

A country of rumours !

waltertoo · Joined: 03 Jan 2005 Posts: 22 Location: Saudi Arabia

Teacher's car with bullet hole is parked outside my compound as I type.

Mark100 · Joined: 05 Feb 2003 Posts: 441

I would give KFUPM via Al Falak a miss.

A lot of the guys are having problems as they are being brought in on visit visas and not proper resident visas.
The compound where i drink has many guys from Al Falak staying there and the place is a real dive but they cannot afford decent accommodation on the salary they are getting.
The students apparently are the dregs and I think a lot of the guys are working in the afternoons from 4 to ....
There is a very high turn over rate so i wouldn't bother.

Stephen Jones · Joined: 21 Feb 2003 Posts: 4124

There are plenty of problems with visit visas.

None of these problems are insuperable, and there are the very big advantages that you don't need to bother about NOCs if you decide to get another job, and you don't have to hang around in your home country with no job arranging the visa,so if you want to test the water, then there are worse decisions you could make.

Bebsi · Joined: 07 Feb 2005 Posts: 958

I have worked in the Community Colleges and hope to return soon. I have at one point examined the Al Falak proposal.

I would say the difference between them is, respectively, like the difference between going on a foreign holiday with Thomas Cook, and using Happie Holidays ("we guarantee you will have the sun, moon and stars all to yourself on our tours!!").