Job Discussion Forums

[Rashee]

Hello everyone,
I will be traveling to Ibra in a few days and I wanted to know a little about it from the many "experienced" instructors who lived in Oman or who are currently living in Oman.

I remember reading a few older forums that one person stated and I am going to paraphrase, " the taxis and camels compete on the road". Now, I understand from my research that it's a small town or village but could anyone tell me if they have internet services and access to different banks?

I am not seeing much information from the internet, at times Ibra doesn't even show up as an option. I am coming to Oman to teach ESL at the Colleges of Technology; so any info would be very helpful.

Cheers!!

[ellanvannin]

Hi Rashee

I'm also starting at the Colleges of Technology in the near future. I was given the choice of Ibra or Nizwa, and chose Nizwa because I found even less info about Ibra on the web.

There are a few pages about a place called 'Ibri', which just might be 'Ibra', but who knows.

What really baffles me about both towns/villages/hamlets is how come they have colleges which need so many staff in such an isolated area?

Been teaching abroad in Europe and South America for 12 years, but this assignment has to be the scariest yet, simply because it's such a leap into the unknown

[veiledsentiments]

Ibri and Ibra are two different towns... just to confuse things. As to why they seem to be hiring so many teachers, I don't think people stay long. I am assuming that you have read the threads here about the employer. Their reputation is not stellar and many people find that they can't deal with village life. There may be only a handful of western expats and you find that you don't much like any of them.

It is a leap of faith to take these jobs. But, at least there is no real danger. The key is to not have high expectations as to mod cons, great management, and efficiency. You have to have a sense of adventure and especially a sense of humor. You will not live in luxury, but you will have AC... the college will have it too, and the copy machine will work most of the time... though one tends to run out of paper...

Remember that an academic year is only nine months!! And you can always just leave if you can't cope at all with things. It seems that no one with direct experience is showing up here though. too bad...

VS

[ellanvannin]

[veiledsentiments]

All one has to do to leave Oman is to get to the airport and fly out. Not that there will be an airport in either Nizwa or Ibri. But, there is a decent intercity (or is it intracity) bus system - and the airport is just a couple hours away.

I always recommend that people try to make it through that 9 months and I'm certain that one could do that in Nizwa. Normally if people are running screaming for the border or airport, that is when we hear about it here. It just looks better on the CV if you don't decamp in the middle of the academic year.

VS

[Down Home]

I just worked in Ibra for the past year. It is a small town and there's not much to do but Muscat is 1.5 hours away by bus or car and many teachers have cars willing to share.
There are many banks, small and friendly.
There is Internet service, although it's not always reliable.
You will likely be living in a 2-bedroom apartment and if you're lucky it will have been cleaned.
The college is one of the best in the system, due to the fact that the Head is a wonderful man. You will have your own desk and possibly your own computer with Internet connection.
There are more western teachers in Ibra than in any other college, but I understand they are extremely short right now. You will be most welcome. As in any body of workers, you will find some you like and some you don't. You need to have a strong sense of your own identity and a hefty sense of humour so as not to be affected by internal politics.
You will be arriving in the thick of Ramadan, so the hours are short: 9 to 1:30. You cannot eat, drink or chew gum in public, but one office is off limits to students, so teachers can eat lunch there. If you are female, you might be confused about what to wear during Ramadan. Do not be swayed by those who insist that you must cover your hair and/or wear the full Omani outfit (called abaya). You can make your own choices, and many do.
Bring something to occupy yourself with: a project, an on-line course, art---and living in Ibra is like living anywhere.
Good luck.

[veiledsentiments]

Thanks downhome... great to hear a bit about life in Ibra. As I've said before on this board, surviving life in the Gulf mostly depends on ones ability to entertain oneself.

Could you tell us about the class sizes and students? There has been another poster here lately who seemed unable to handle the male students. (I always found them so easy to handle, but some suggest that women have an easier time maintaining discipline with the boys) Have the women had any problems in public with the (usually) younger boys?

VS

[kuberkat]

veiledsentiments wrote: