Job Discussion Forums

[meyanga]

I am a 33 year old British female with 8 years experience in UK, Europe, Africa & Asia. Have MA History and CELTA. Currently studying DELTA by distance - finish in August. Have taught Business, Academic, vocational English as well as IELTS & Cambridge exam prep classes.

I am thinking of teaching in ME and would like some advice from those of you who have done the rounds. I would be moving with my husband and two young children (age 2, 3.5).

1. My husband is a gym instructor/personal trainer, so need to go somewhere where he can work. Don't expect any of you to be experts in job opportunities in this field, but any insights would be appreciated. So far, the majority of jobs advertised on the net are in UAE and Qatar. Do you think other countries have limited options for this type of work? Or just don't advertise overseas?

2. Have Masters in History, but will have DELTA in August. Will this make a big difference in terms of money and jobs I can apply for? Are the unis hard and fast about having a Masters in TESOL/Applied Linguistics? Is it worth applying anyway? I realise you have to send copies of certificates/qualifications so can't apply for anyuthing until Aug anyway, is this too late for vacancies in beginning 2009?

3. What are the usual hiring dates? Am available from Jan 2009.

4. Given the fact that I have two little kiddies, am no longer partying and am happy with somewhere where there's not much to do but nurseries are good and the kids are happy. Both my husband and I are into sports and fitness and it would be nice to think that this would also be an avenue to meet people other than colleagues. What do you reckon?

5. Have some concerns with the hours of work - what is the normal working day. Am not keen on hiring a nanny so would need somewhere where there is no evening work. Is this a possibility? So far, have only seen Language Solutions in Kuwait 7am-3pm, but money is not good.

6. Need a package which pays for flights for whole family and provides housing. Paying nursery is not a huge issue as we pay it here in UK so are used to a percentage of our income going on childcare.

7. What about the British Council? Don't read much about it here - have seen quite a few ads for senior teachers in various ME countries, good packages, but evening work.

Sorry this is so long. Would really appreciate any words of wisdom.

Thanks

[desert date]

[meyanga]

Thanks for the reply.

Yes my husband is British, which brings me to the next question - he is black, I am white, kids are (obviously) mixed. How will this go down in ME countries?

Have taught in Thailand at AUA, Vietnam at ILA and a little private language school in Nepal just for a few months. We found the Vietnamese pretty racist towards my husband in general but TOTALLY AGAINST a mixed race couple. Taxis wouldn't stop for us and some shops wouldn't serve us. Wasn't nice. Wouldn't want my kids to go through anything like that.

Am off to read KSA forum....

[veiledsentiments]

There have been some threads about racism in the ME mixed about in different branchess. It exists in the Gulf too, but not to the extent of Asia. While in the ME, I worked with every possible mix of inter-racial marriage, and they felt that the problems were tolerable. I'm sure that you are realistic enough to not expect perfection from your fellow humans.

That said, I would recommend the UAE as your best choice. It is big enough to be able to find work for your husband... though the salaries may not be stellar as he will be competing with nationalities that take lower salaries. Qatar is quite small.

Apply to HCT. (do search on the UAE branch) But... you may want to wait until you have that DELTA in hand or maybe just go ahead and do it now as this is the peak of the hiring time - and stress the August finish date. I think they would look favorably on your experience... especially if you have some academic English mixed in there. They also have one of the best benefit packages.

I think that you would find that the ME will offer both better pay and a more comfortable social situation. At least your children should suffer little obvious racism.

VS

[meyanga]

thanks VS. One more question... if my husband had not secured a job prior to leaving the UK and came into the country with a visa sponsored by my employer, would that be easily changed when he found work?

Thanks!

[veiledsentiments]

This happens quite regularly. I wouldn't suggest that it is easy, but it certainly is done.

VS

[mishmumkin]

[NadiaK]

For HCT, you would most likely not be screened in for interview without your Dip in hand (the only way to tell for sure is to try). However, HCT may well be hiring after August for a January start so even if you applied now and were not screened in, you could re-apply once it had been awarded.

Depending on your employer and the country you end up in, you may not be able to get visas for your husband/children (either through your employer or by directly sponsoring them yourself). Men can do this much more easily than women can. Do check and double check before you accept anything if this is an issue. (I can PM you with my personal experiences in various ME countries if you like.) Working for HCT in the UAE *will* allow you to sponsor your dependents.

British Council unfortunately does not offer very family-friendly packages on the whole, and the job almost always includes evening work.

As for mixed race families, I agree with VS. My family is mixed race, and I can't think of a single instance of racism/hostility that we've experience in 15 years of living in several different ME countries.

Good luck!