Job Discussion Forums

[Smooth Operator]

Hello everyone. I have searched these forums without getting a solid answer so am hoping somebody can enlighten me. I have been working at a Japanese university for the last 5 years but am getting itchy feet and have a few questions about the UAE.

Salaries in UAE universities seem competitive with Japanese ones, especially when factoring in tax and accommodation. Is the UAE the best paying area of the ME? From the jobs advertised on this site here, those in Saudi don't seem to earning more.

Due to a quirk of my job (I was hired to teach content in English), I don't have the magic MATESOL but an MA in International Relations. Of course, I do have lots of experience also teaching more 'regular' English classes in my work experience at uni level and 3 years at junior high school. That does include 5 years experience teaching EAP and academic writing using CALL, with a few publications in that subject area too.

So, without an MA in TESOL can I still get hired by the likes of HCT, the Petroleum Institute, George Mason University, Zayed Uuniversity, UAEU, the American University of Sharjah and University of Sharjah.? Do I need to have a CELTA or DELTA under my belt? Preferably, I want my MA and experience accounted for in the pay package rather than enter at the lowest end of the payscale with 'only' a BA. Otherwise, financially the move woudn't be worth it.

Thanks for any input.

[caliph]

You might checkout Qatar, it's the up and coming place in the Gulf, not as much nightlife as Dubai, but money and conditions are often better.

I worked in Japan, and coming to the Gulf will be a major culture shock! The whole philosophy of life here is "don't do anything today that you can put off forever". Students are usually so rich that they are not very motivated. What's the point of studying when you have a $100,000 dollar car sitting outside with the engine running for hours to keep it nice and cool while you are in class.

Get the point?

[globalnomad2]

Smoothie: About your MA: With your experience I think the HCT would consider you for EFL teaching.

For my first three semesters at George Mason, my office was 10 feet away from the general parking lot. Students enjoyed rushing from the classroom to rev their Land Cruiser engines to the redline in order to blow out my eardrums and make it impossible to grade their gibberish papers.

I was also in Japan, 1988-92, at an American and then a Japanese university. At least the Arab students we get (who have, of course, self-selected into an American institution) don't exhibit any bushido b.s. and they don't assume they are racially and culturally superior to the rest of the world, and the young ladies don't look at their desks and hide behind their hair...of course, some hide their hair behind sheilas, but most of our Arab girls are from non-abaya-wearing countries. They don't have the work ethic of the Japanese, but then remember that college in Japan is goof-off time anyway.

[Gordon]

Smooth Operator, sounds like we are in the same boat. I too have been working at a Japanese university the past 5 years and look set to leave this summer. My job is good, 5 months off/yr blah blah blah, but I have had enough, time to move on. I think one of the best things about our occupation is the mobility it offers.

I am not so sure if UAE has what i am looking for, I do not want to live in a big city like Dubai and Abu Dhabi where I will have to live like a pauper or have some tiny apt with my large family. Sounds like education or housing has been cut from most of the unis your mentioned so UAE is not much of a haven for teachers with families anymore. We'll see what happens though. You may have different circumstances than me.

[Smooth Operator]

Gordon, you sound like your research is more advanced than mine. I will be staying in Japan a bit longer but am casting around for other opportunities and challenges and think I would like the Middle East. My wife would like a move out of Japan too.

[yaramaz]

Gordon, I don't know how things are for new hires, but my partner works for the HCT women's college and his package includes a rent free 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment in Dubai, very centrally located. And he is single. Maybe families are given even more? It's worth checking out.

[Gordon]

[Gordon]

[Smooth Operator]

Strangely enough Gordon, my wife is Japanese and has lived in a Muslim country previously. She even speaks a little Arabic. But anyway, does anyone know anybody working at a university in the region (not just UAE) where a non-MATESOL postgraduate degree helped them (or at least didn't hinder them) secure one of these attractive jobs?

[Iamherebecause]

For the record, I haven't heard this 'either housing or education allowance' deal anywhere other than in this particular discussion. And I live in the UAE.

On colour of MA - UGRU - UAEU got a lot fussier recently and some people who had been successfully working there for years were told to upgrade their qualifications or their contracts wouldn't be renewed. Several choosed to leave, unsurprisingly.

[Gordon]

[helmsman]

It is very difficult to advance to the well-paid Gulf jobs without an MA in TESOL or Applied Linguistics. If I were you I'd enroll in a distance learning degree if I couldn't afford to take a year or two off to take a full time MA. In my case it ate up my life savings, but that's the cost you have to pay. Your first MA would definitely be a nice bonus in the eyes of HR people. You might be able to find employment now somewhere in the UAE, for example, but you might feel frustrated at not getting the same benefits as holders of appropriate qualifications. The clock is ticking.

[Gordon]

[Smooth Operator]

Interesting to see the different responses - so I might be welcome at HCT but not at UAEU. It's the same here in Japan - some universities look at the 'whole package' of a teacher's experience and qualifications and some rigidly stick to the MATESOL standard. Of course, having sat on hiring committees myself, I know how easily such policies can be made and changed when it suits. I guess I won't really know until I apply.

By the way, when I can continue working in a Japanese university with my present qualifications, doing an MATESOL to work for a similar salary in the ME doesn't make me very motivated to undertake one. However, to get a CELTA to supplement the MA sounds very feasible.

Thanks for all the responses.

[veiledsentiments]