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[job seeker]

I was wondering if anyone out there has advice on getting a job in the Gulf.  I speak Arabic, though I would prefer not to be required to lecture in it.  I know that there are some Gulf jobs in the Chronicle, but I also know that there are more jobs over there than I see advertised.  Does anyone know of somewhere else that they're listed?  And does anyone have experience with the hiring process there?  Are social sciences in demand there, or just business and computer profs?

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[anon]

I have occasionally seen jobs in that region listed on jobs.ac.uk but there must be a better source. Have you Googled it?

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[Bboy]

That depends on your research area of specialisation. I would recommend some of the list-serves on h-Net that have a Middle Eastern focus (Islam-Art,  H-Levant, H-Turk etc); search their past posts, sign up for their lists, and you may be more likely to get info that way.  There must also be more specific list serves related to what you specialize in.

[hmmm]

you read arabic and speak what dialect?   if you are an expert in that language field, and are a u.s. citizen then i suggest working for the government.  it pays more.

[job seeker]

I'm sorry for the late reply.  I got caught up in other things.  I'll definitely try the british source and h-net--thanks!  I did google, but I still feel that I'm not getting everything.

I speak Jordanian but I would avoid working for the government for political reasons, as would most people who've studied the region long enough to get language expertise.  The reason the govt has so much trouble finding Arabic speakers is not because there aren't any, but because of their policies (Iraq, Israel, and I shudder to think what war will be next--not to even get into the issue of propping up unpopular dictators.  While the Jordanian govt is actually relatively good, it would be more responsive to its citizens without U.S. pressure.)  I went into the field with absolutely no interest in politics, but you can't spend years reading about the region without becoming horrified by the U.S. govt's long history of wreaking every form of havoc.

[Gulf prof]

I work at a new American university in Kuwait and I would recommend it with only a few reservations.  On the down side, the lifestyle here is extremely slow with precious few opportunities for doing anything other than dining out with co-workers at chain restaurants in western-style malls.  But that can be seen as positive because you have a lot more time to write articles! The only other negative is that the ex-pat community draws some strange personality types.  That's certainly not to say that everyone in academic departments in the States all have their heads screwed on straight because they don't.  It's just that there's a higher ratio of really awful people here.  I think these are the people who can't keep a job in the States; they come here and settle in to make every else's lives miserable.

But the good things are really good.  The money is great because you get the equivalent of about 50,000 dollars per annum but it's not taxed.  On top of that, they pay your rent for you each month too and also pay a one-time lump sum for the furnishings.  They also fly you home every summer on their dime.  At the end of the three-year contract you receive a bonus equivalent to three month's salary.

It's a bona fide university based on the American system and I teach the same types of classes that I would teach at a comparable university in the States.  I also serve on the same types of committees.  At the end of my three years here I will have developed my CV very nicely in preparation for my return to the US job market.  Of course I might also decide to stay on for another three years and save the money.  If I stay for nine years, I could come home and retire!

There are many new universities planning to open here in Kuwait in the very near future and they advertise in the Chronicle and in the MLA JIL.

By the way, the political situation here is extremely calm.  Americans are not at risk.  Kuwait is becoming more and more open.  Many Kuwaiti women do not veil themselves and foreign women are not expected to.  I wouldn't wear shorts or tank tops here but otherwise I dress exactly as I would in the US.  And finally, yes women can drive cars.

[anon2]

Very well said job seeker!