Teaching in Doha

Teaching in Doha – What is it like? What should I be aware of?

The SeekTeachers™ team continue their quest to give you the “real deal” insight into the working life in various areas.  This time round we got the “low down” from a very experienced senior teacher in Qatar, Doha.  There are definitely some golden nuggets to take away from this blog!  Here is what he has to say..

Patience and tolerance are probably the most important qualities you will need both at school and away from work.  Patience with both your school administration and life in Doha itself.  You can expect your school, like so many others, to be run by a Director of Schools, yes there will be a Principal, but he/she will not have the autonomy that you would expect in Western schools.  The Principal is there to carry out directions and instructions from the Director, who invariably is not Western and has very little educational management background.  There will also be the Qatari owner, who will have his say in how things should happen.

Remember, Qatar is now officially the richest country in the world (based on income per capita) and is set to become even richer.  Qataris are smart businessmen, look at how they bought Harrods, most of London’s city centre property and whole addresses, how they bank rolled Barclays Bank during the recent crisis, they have massive shares in UK businesses eg Sainsburys is over 1/4 Qatari owned.  Anyway, your Principal will have to get along with the Director and owner in order to survive (there have been instances when Principals have argued or said “No” to either or both and they have then found themselves on the next plane home!) This can make many Principals very nervous and stressed individuals and can make them appear to be on the side of the BIG Boss/es.  Try to understand the position they are in before you start venting your frustration at them.

Yes, you will go through an awful lot of frustration.  The list is long – frustration with obtaining necessary paperwork from the school, frustration with maintenance at your accommodation (the usual line from workmen is they will come “after 4.30”, but they fail to be exact or even say which day), frustration at language barriers, frustration at children in your lessons who do not really want to be at school and who get no support from home so your efforts seem wasted, frustration with their parents who will expect to see you 5 minutes before you are due to leave school and will want to spend an hour telling you that their child should have scored 98% in a recent test not 96% that you gave him.

So tolerance becomes crucial.  Remember, you are in the country as a visitor.  You are providing a service but you are being paid for that service and you are being provided with many “perks” with that job, so you are expected to “sing for your supper” an awful lot.  When you feel your blood beginning to get warm (which has nothing to do with the temperature being 40 degrees plus), take a step back, breathe slowly and remember that in the bigger picture of life what you might be expected to do or have to do is not that difficult really.

But there are many, many positives to working in Doha.  Not just no income tax, but when you sit down and work out what you would be paying/have deducted from salary back home – National insurance contributions, VAT, rent/mortgage, Council tax, very high utility bills, petrol costs etc. etc.  You can have the “Prada/Armani/Gucci” lifestyle if you want but you will pay for it.  Alternatively, you can choose material and have clothes made very cheaply and made very well.  If you want brand name food items you will pay for them but different food stuffs and different meals are much more affordable.  Why go to the international hotels and spend a small fortune on an even smaller platter of international cuisine when you can explore small, “backstreet” Thai, Sri Lankan, Indian, Turkish, Lebanese, Moroccan eating places?  Take that tolerant attitude you are developing when you stand outside one of these places thinking about going in, strike up a conversation with the waiter or manager, he will be very genuinely interested in you and if show an interest in him you may get treated that little bit better than others.

You can save money, you can transfer money very easily; you may wish to consider sending savings to an offshore tax-free account.  If you decide to stay for a length of time you can get loans for car purchases.  Remember cars are cheaper than in the west and generally bigger with more extras being included as standard.  Repayments are very reasonable as in theory there is no such thing as interest in Muslim law (although this is often disguised as administration charges).  You will also get a decent price when you want to sell and in some cases car dealers will guarantee to buy back.

Explore other countries – flights to and from neighbouring countries in the Middle East are generally affordable, so look to visit places you wouldn’t normally go to in your holidays.

Make your provided accommodation your home.  Get yourself to the Souks and buy some rugs (not necessarily silk but good strong wool); have a bed (and other furniture) made and delivered; look for wall hangings; use different materials for throws and covers; check that you can decorate the walls and get one of the maintenance guys from school to come and do it for a very cheap price; ask the cleaners at school if they would be interested in cleaning your place once a week and doing the ironing.

In short, you will get out of your Middle East experience what you put into it.

The Interview Stage

Your interview may be very short, don’t be put off if it is so.  Directors/Principals are incredibly busy and will have decided if they want you by discussing your CV before hand.  Make sure your CV is professional and clear, with a photograph (not a social snapshot).

Do your homework on the school and lifestyle in Middle East.  You can guarantee one question will be “Why do you want to work here?”

Be clear in your answers, you may be dealing with someone whose English is a second language.

Be polite no matter how your spoken to and treated, by this I do not man be a yes man/woman but don’t vent out like you would back home, it won’t get your very far here.

Have questions you want answering but avoid asking about salary.  This will be brought up by the school.  Don’t be afraid to negotiate but remember you don’t want to be greedy and your salary will be tax-free, rent free and your flights will be paid for.

Finish by asking the interviewer what will be the next step/stage be – will you receive a contract through email, when will you get your flight ticket and itinerary, where will you be teaching in the school (ie age groups, subject etc.).  This shows your keen and eager to the employer and increases your chances of being made an offer.

from a senior teachers in Doha, Qatar.

As with any country, there are pro’s and con’s.  This blog highlights exactly this but you should do your homework before you tread in to the unknown

If you like would to discuss something specific why not drop us a comment and we will get back to you as soon as possible. Thanks

Regards

The SeekTeachers™ Team

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Preparing for an Interview

Great I have an interview, but..

What do I do? What do I need? What should I prepare?

These questions no doubt will enter your mind especially if you’re Newly Qualified Teacher looking for your first teaching job abroad. In fact middle and senior managers would also be thinking these questions if they are going to foreign territory.

So the first thing to note is what format the interview is.  It can be on of the following

1. Face-to-face (recruitment drive or recruitment fair)
2. Web conference (Skype)
3. Telephone

Face-to-Face Interviews

It goes without saying that if the interview is a face-to-face, your personal appearance is crucial as it would set the stage before you begin answering questions, so ensure you dressed well, smell well and be professional.  Recruitment fairs can be extremely busy places and with hundreds of teacher being interviews you really do need to create an impression so being presentable is key.  Ideally be dressed in a suit.

Key points:

• The more you make yourself look professional and well-groomed, the greater your first impression will be to the employer.
• Be sure you arrive early and make sure you have a map of where the interviews are being held.
• Come with a portfolio of evidence

Web Conference Interviews

This is the next best thing to face-to-face interviews as employers don’t have to be physically be in the same location as you but you can still see each other and get a feel for you.  Again be well-groomed and come across professional. Do NOT come dressed casually thinking you’re interviewing from your house and you can be as you want.  That first impression is crucial! You will most likely need to download Skype and set up a Skype Account.  Best of all its FREE!

Key Points:

• Check your equipment is working and there is no technical glitch with your web camera or Skype software
• Be early
• Make sure you have your resume with you.
• Make sure you have sample evidence of work with you e.g. lesson plan, observation notes etc

Telephone interview

Again this could feel strange for some as you have to be on the ball when answering the question and you personally don’t get to see or get a feel for your employer.  However, again its crucial your early on the phone and have aback up solution in case you have phone problems.

Key Points:

• Be early and check there are no phone issues
• Have you resume with you
• do some homework on the school

Some of you may be wondering I have mentioned a portfolio but what should I include in this? Below are things we highly recommend you prepare to have to create a top impression:

1. Front page cover with your name and subject you teach
2. A table of contents
3. A copy of your resume/CV
4. Degree Qualification(s)
5. Teaching Qualification(s)
6. Good observations which have been carried out on you
7. Photos highlighting you top work
8. Lesson plans & SoW
9. Resources you have created
10. Testimonials from students and fellow colleagues
11. References from previous employers
12. Evidence of CPD
13. Powerpoint presentation

These are just some of the things you can prepare and get together before your interview.

Please note certain countries may have any eye for specific information they are looking for.  Any experienced teachers in different parts of the world who would like to comment or add to that list can do so

I wish you every success in preparing for your interview and if there is anything specific you would like covered let me know

Regards

The SeekTeachers™ Team
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