Qatar for long has been enticing professionals, tourists and investors to mystic cities like Doha and letting them witness growth on each of its economic fronts. Be it the thrust gaining tourism industry, or the blooming aviation sector that has been going gaga with international traffic of late, reasons are numerous for any Qatari worker to celebrate.
However, one such sector that gets eyeballs from around the world is the rampant education sector in this exotic Arab land. With a number of British and American Schools finding way into the culturally rich Qatar, it goes without saying that opportunities for those desiring to teach in Qatari schools have increased exponentially. However, here’re some tips to help you score an offer with leading schools and universities in the country. Drop a good glance and absorb all that you can.
Understand what the Profile Entails
Go around the world and you will often come across people who work as an international teacher, but confuse the same with teaching English in a foreign land. To put it straight, these two are quite different profiles, hence require totally different approach while searching for employment offers. However, most schools in Qatar are looking for qualified teachers having prowess in elementary and secondary subjects.
An important fact to notice is that these have to be kept in English essentially, owing to the large number of international schools in the country. Hence, it’s quite significant to understand the profile and subject expertise required along with the same.
Clean all Social Media Accounts
Employers in Qatar are getting quite specific regarding hiring foreign talent, hence undergo a considerable amount of background check before shortlisting all applicants. Different kinds of schools and universities here are re-instating on the importance of hiring talent from within the country. This makes it equally important to check online platforms you are visible on, and clear out any questionable or controversial content that might upset the hiring manager.
Being a teacher, a clean and simple image is one of the first pre-requisites any Qatari recruiter seeks for. Make sure you come across as a candidate in a likewise manner.
Visit Career Fairs and Trust Your Network
Qatar is country home to a number of global events happening throughout the year. Career fairs are common events organized in all cities, Doha majorly. It’s not only a ray of hope for students trying to pick between different career alternatives, but all aspiring teachers as well.
Apart from career experts and reputed speakers, what you find is a large pool of professors, principals, headmasters and other professionals coming from renowned schools and universities in the country. There’s a large pool of referrals you can work with, in addition to your network in Qatar which will keep appending as time passes by. Make a good use of these and find leads for job openings with different institutes. You can also learn about the employer preferences, which add a bunch during the interview rounds.
The Right ‘Student Oriented Approach’
Considering the Kafala system in the country wherein the employer has to sponsor your visa and accommodation, all education institutes and schools have become highly choosy while hiring talent from overseas. The inability to form the right connect with your students is the last thing an employer wants after such efforts.
Qatar is a country with cultural diversity from different countries in the world, right from other Arabic countries to Latin America, Britain, India and South Africa. Workout on your approach to handle different students and keep it simple for them to grasp what you teach.
Hacks are numerous to enlist. Make sure you stick to the basics and keep your timing right, schools in Qatar are always up for hiring skilled teachers!
Author Bio: Anshuman Kukreti is a professional writer and a keen follower of the global job market. An engineer by qualification and an artist at heart, he writes on various topics related to employment across the Gulf. Reach him @ LinkedIn, Twitter and Google+.