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Kurdistan Raparin University

 
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Siobhan 22



Joined: 13 Jul 2016
Posts: 170

PostPosted: Thu Jul 27, 2017 8:20 pm    Post subject: Kurdistan Raparin University Reply with quote

Anyone know how Kurdistan offers compare.

Raparin Univ. in Banya in February and more recently offered

$2500 for BA and $3000 for MA (Oman-level salary).
28 hour week, 15-18 lessons.

Does this stack up for a relatively safe area, yet one not light years from Mosul?

No tax on first $1000, 5% on rest.

Worth it in light of other non-ESL factors?

Anyone been in Kurdistan in last 12-18 months?
___________________________________________________________

Amended Jan 28.

(i) Spelling: Banya > Ranya.
(ii) Salary correction: $2000 for BA; $2450 for MA and PhD.

Expect ca. 16 - 20 x 45min. lessons per week


Last edited by Siobhan 22 on Mon Jan 29, 2018 1:18 am; edited 2 times in total
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RedLightning



Joined: 08 Aug 2015
Posts: 137
Location: United States

PostPosted: Fri Jul 28, 2017 5:21 am    Post subject: Re: Kurdistan Raparin University Reply with quote

I left a couple years ago, although I did so with two offers in the $2500/month range for the 2015-16 academic year (international schools);
there was no tax at the time but I'm not surprised there is one now all things considered.


Siobhan 22 wrote:
$2500 for BA and $3000 for MA (Oman-level salary).


I was under the impression that Oman salaries rarely hit above $2300, but if they're offering $2500-3000/month, you may opt to go there instead (Oman) as I've heard only good things about it.

I enjoyed living in Kurdistan, or I should say I much preferred it to living in KSA. With that said however, I was located in Erbil which I assume has a little more to offer than Ranya.
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Siobhan 22



Joined: 13 Jul 2016
Posts: 170

PostPosted: Fri Jul 28, 2017 2:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the feedback.

(Re. Oman, I am including accomm. and transport allowances et al.)
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cartago



Joined: 19 Oct 2005
Posts: 283
Location: Iraq

PostPosted: Sun Jul 30, 2017 9:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm in Kurdistan. Safety is not an issue, it's relatively near Mosul but perfectly safe.

Ranya is a small city and will probably be boring. It's north of lake Dukan and about 2 hours drive from Sulaymaniyah. So you could visit Sulaymaniyah or Erbil, both larger cities with more to offer, on a day trip.

$2500 is pretty good in Kurdistan, you can definitely save on that and there's probably not much to do in Ranya so you may not be spending much.
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Siobhan 22



Joined: 13 Jul 2016
Posts: 170

PostPosted: Wed Oct 25, 2017 8:58 pm    Post subject: Re: Kurdistan Raparin University Reply with quote

I enjoyed living in Kurdistan, or I should say I much preferred it to living in KSA. With that said however, I was located in Erbil which I assume has a little more to offer than Ranya.[/quote]


A very strong candidate for the understatement of the year, Red Lightning.
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maqueen



Joined: 28 Feb 2006
Posts: 28

PostPosted: Thu Nov 23, 2017 7:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

At the moment UoR has serious issues with prompt payment (approaching 4 months as of posting) and management.
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maqueen



Joined: 28 Feb 2006
Posts: 28

PostPosted: Sat Dec 23, 2017 5:01 pm    Post subject: Not paid for last month of work. Reply with quote

An update.

Administration is a complete joke. Worse still the foreign staff. Very minimal ESL experience on the whole and not really contributing except as clowns in the circus. They have hired anyone with a pulse who applied, for a university wide 1st year vanity program of one of the directors. When I say nobody knows what they are doing as far as ESL or within a university environment, I mean literally.

Heavy live shooting next to campus about 300 meters from my apartment for over 5 hours. People dead, burned out buildings around town, etc.

...and I was completely stiffed on last month salary after dealing with chronic delays over prior 7 months.
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ttxor1



Joined: 04 Jan 2014
Posts: 119

PostPosted: Wed Jan 17, 2018 10:07 am    Post subject: Re: Kurdistan Raparin University Reply with quote

Siobhan 22 wrote:
Anyone know how Kurdistan offers compare.

Raparin Univ. in Banya in February and more recently offered

$2500 for BA and $3000 for MA (Oman-level salary).
28 hour week, 15-18 lessons.

Does this stack up for a relatively safe area, yet one not light years from Mosul?

No tax on first $1000, 5% on rest.

Worth it in light of other non-ESL factors?

Anyone been in Kurdistan in last 12-18 months?


The town is Ranya, not Banya.

The pay is on par with other offers in the area, but the contact hours are a bit high. Indeed, as cartago mentions, as there's not much to do in Kurdistan, one can easily save 70% of one's salary. Similar to the interior towns in Oman, Northern Iraq is a good place to knock out a ph.d, publication, delta module 3, or write a novel. Wasn't ever taxed on salary.

Didn't ever feel unsafe in the area. A google news search didn't pull up the violence that maqueen reported, but on being stiffed on salaries...

What they'll do is they won't pay you your full salary for a number of months. Then the final salary will be short as well. Depending on the admin, this might be able to be resolved if you stay in the region, keep in touch with them, and are willing to go back to campus to pick up any remaining checks / money. If you are on a proper work visa, legal recourse is an option, albeit probably requiring remaining in the area for the course of the legal proceedings. Although, the region's relationship with the central government is not good, to say the least. Not only that, but the economy is in the dumps as the central government has strangled the region's economy by closing the international airports and taking over oil export negotiations (the lifeline of the economy) with Turkey.

Erbil has way more to offer in terms of nightlife / social scene than the other towns / cities in the area, for sure.
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maqueen



Joined: 28 Feb 2006
Posts: 28

PostPosted: Thu Jan 18, 2018 11:10 am    Post subject: Cite for Ranya violence. Reply with quote

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2017/12/21/546382/Kurdistan-Sulaimaniyah-Ranya-UN-Haider-alAbadi

I WAS there on the day this happened and when I say I was close to a protracted, live-fire skirmish, we are talking throwing a baseball and getting a good roll close... I lived a 5 minute walk to the school.

The place prides themselves on their protest/riot history. It is talked about in glowing terms. Not uncommon for for students or staff to just not show up or walk out for any slight-of-the-day reason.

The salary stuff is 100% true. Not only do I have my experiences, but know of other teachers who worked in other public positions who lost at least a couple of months.
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ttxor1



Joined: 04 Jan 2014
Posts: 119

PostPosted: Sun Jan 21, 2018 6:04 pm    Post subject: KRG Reply with quote

I hope you weren't hurt in the violence.

Wasn't quibbling with salary disputes; re-read my post as I confirmed your report on salary stuff.

Just corrected the name of the town you're referring to.
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maqueen



Joined: 28 Feb 2006
Posts: 28

PostPosted: Sun Jan 21, 2018 7:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I wasn't in the middle of the stuff, more like a sideline observer...

No quibbles really with anything you've written on any of the threads regarding Kurdistan.

Just reiterating. Stay away from UoR. It is a pubic school with ongoing payment issues and further wouldn't suggest as a work destination unless wholesale changes are made in department administration and expat staff.

Anyone considering this place PLEASE PM me beforehand.
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Siobhan 22



Joined: 13 Jul 2016
Posts: 170

PostPosted: Sun Jan 28, 2018 4:48 pm    Post subject: Amendments Reply with quote

ttxor1

I have amended the spelling of Banya/Ranya and also the salary details.
MA and PhD are now the same - 3,000,000 IQD or $2450pm (2,500,000 IQD or $2000 for BA) plus free accommodation (with sporadic electricity) unless you use the "guest house".

(One small bonus: the MA can be in any subject).
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ttxor1



Joined: 04 Jan 2014
Posts: 119

PostPosted: Mon Jan 29, 2018 12:39 pm    Post subject: KRG Reply with quote

I didn't work for UoR, and would rather not name the employer I worked for as it would identify me. I'm certain that employers/recruiters/contractors monitor these boards and I wouldn't want anything I've written here to affect my chances at a job.

That being said, the employer I worked for has advertised twice on these boards in the last year. There's also a thread on them here. The salary is on the higher side of the scale that I quoted in a previous post, and it is in the job advert. It's a flat rate regardless of qualifications.

I also didn't quibble with the report on UoR regarding salaries. I've been told a similar story about another employer. That's what I was referring to in my previous post in this thread.

I wouldn't necessarily discourage people from working for the employer. They paid on time and in full. Overtime work was readily available. I don't need an active social scene, so what was there was enough for me. The students, albeit a bit arrogant sometimes, were generally polite and cooperative.

I was just tired of being freezing cold in the winter in my apartment (and sometimes having to take cold showers in the winter), dealing with a kerosene burner, and the sporadic electricity. The visa stuff got really annoying.

I'm happy to answer any specific questions (other than the name of the employer for reasons stated above) to anyone potential applicants. I was there for a year.
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