Job Discussion Forums

[ksarelkebir]

Greetings,

I am wondering if I have relevant qualifications to make a competitive job application in KSA or elsewhere in the region.

A B.A. in English, two years of teaching University-level English in France.
An M.A. and Ph.D. in French with 9 years teaching at a liberal arts college in the U.S.A.

I don't have an English teaching certification, but I have been teaching a foreign language. I am a native speaker of English. I also have loads of administrative and curriculum experience related to college teaching in the United States.

Any comments or advice would be really, really welcome.

Thanks!

[veiledsentiments]

Considering all the time and effort that you have put into getting your degrees in French, I would look for a university that is offering French language courses.

I suspect that your chances of that are better in the UAE than KSA... but still slim.

If you are employed as a professor in the US teaching French, your income would be better than going to the Gulf as an English teacher where your advanced degrees would probably not be recognized in a way to increase your salary.

VS

[globalnomad2]

I cannot imagine many experienced PhDs from the West thinking seriously of Saudi Arabia unless they're extremely devout and conservative Muslims. The UAE is much better in terms of personal freedom and things to do and see, but college life is not really a professional experience. Except for the important distinction that you won't be segregated by gender.

[Stephen Jones]

You should be able to get a job, though the fact that you do not have a TEFL qualification might cause problems with more ignorant HR departments.

The question you should ask yourself is why you want to come to the Gulf. It will be basic EFL pretty well anywhere (probably little different from teaching basic French at a liberal arts college though).

The money's not great any more; you need to think about why you want to come.

[trapezius]

You could teach French at Berlitz in Saudi.

I think the salary is about SR 10,000.

Or as others said, find a university with a French department in the Middle East, or even in Malaysia, Singapore, HK, etc. Oh, and North Africa; they surely have French departments in universities there. (and Lebanon of course)

[007]