UAE....ADEC

silverlinings

Yup same here. I was the same first time going out I was so excited and then as the time drew nearer i got more and more nervous but it was fine. Everyone is in the same boat going out. Nope I don't know anyone else heading out, I've met one or two people that work with adec through friends but wouldn't really know them as such. Do you know anyone heading out either?

Lilly0907

No dont know anyone going to Abu Dhabi! My friend got a job in a private school in dubai so i'll def be going for a visit Ah it will be great really! Beats staying here and not being able to save a penny!!

silverlinings

oh fab! you'll love it there! yup and when I think of all the traveling I've done from there too it is worth it. I imagine it will be hard work I'm pretty certain public schools start teaching around 7 there but in my last job it was a case of working really hard from sun to thurs and having an equally busy weekend (most weekends lol).

Lilly0907

Work hard play hard!! sounds like a plan We'll adapt pretty easy i'm sure ..... All that vit D!!

silverlinings

The sun shining makes it a lot easier to get up in the mornings :P:D

MakeEmLaugh

Anyone going/gone to Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi? Got offered a position this afternoon. A bit terrified, to be honest. So much has to be done in a tiny amount of time.

I know a lot have already gone over there. Do you think Monday week (26th August) would be too late to head over there?

Lilly0907

Hey, are they organising your flights for you? This is my first time going to the UAE so I cant advise you sorry!! I'm heading out Tuesday

MakeEmLaugh

Lilly0907 wrote: »

Hey, are they organising your flights for you? This is my first time going to the UAE so I cant advise you sorry!! I'm heading out Tuesday

Are you heading to Khalifa too?

Lilly0907

No I'm going with ADEC so I don't know where I will be placed!!

MakeEmLaugh

Anyone going with SABIS who hasn't gone yet? If, could I possibly call you to discuss the matter?

silverlinings

there is a thread for teachers going to work with sabis, in the teaching abroad section, check that out and see if you can contact someone through that. Sabis hire vast amounts of teachers every year and I don't think you'll be the last one arriving or anything. I have lived in the UAE before, not Abu Dhabi, but pm me if you want to ask any questions and I'll do my best to help.

rm376

Anyone in AD yet? I'm here now looking for something to do.

silverlinings

Can I ask who did you fly with? I'm waiting on my flight details and trying to gauge the weight of my suitcase!

There is loads to do in AD check out that link there might be some info on things happening there at the moment. Other than that visit one of the malls, the Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque is beautiful, go for a walk on the Corniche (although you might want to wait until the evening when it cools down a bit)

Lilly0907

Hey, I'll be in AD Wednesday morn! I'm flying with Etihad, luggage allowance is 30kg and I have loads in my suitcase and its 26kg at the mo!!!

rm376

I went with KML through Amsterdam. I didnt really bring much stuff at all no where near 20kg. Dont even bother bringing clothes and stuff the malls here are absolutely incredible ye ladies will be in your element haha. It is a really cool place though

namurt

UnfortunatelyI didn't have a very positive experience with ADEC (to say the least) but I am capable of being objective so if anyone has any questions about the move or the process feel free to ask.

Also, I would definitely recommend checking out the groups on Facebook. There are loads of them based on different topics, although sometimes with a lot of overlap, but really I would have been lost without them. They kept me semi-sane as I tried to deal with issues before I even got to leave, and one of the first things I did when I arrived was to check who else was in the same hotel as me and arrange to meet them. Otherwise I would have felt very isolated.

Anyway, good luck to all of you who are going.

silverlinings

Can you link a group on facebook by any chance? I didnt get hired by through teachanywhere and it would be nice to speak to a few people before going/be able to find people when I get there. If you can't it's no hassle.

namurt

I left nearly all the groups. This is the only one I am still a member of https://www.facebook.com/groups/480421928650685/ It's called Irish and UK LTs. It doesn't get much traffic so I hardly ever used it but you might be able to find out about other ones through it. The groups are always closed so you have to request to join. Just typing in ADEC in the search on facebook will bring up a few though.

silverlinings

Ok cool thanks, do you mind me asking what happened with ADEC? and how long you were there for?

namurt

Basically every step of the way things went wrong. I was supposed to leave at the start of August but they kept sending me someone else's visa. The first time they cancelled my flight a few hours before I was due to leave. The next time they cancelled it a bit sooner. Finally, on the third attempt, at the start of September I finally got to go. Then they dumped me in with a group who had been there for weeks so I missed all of the orientation and had to try to figure everything out for myself. They moved me to Al Ain (which by the way is lovely, so don't worry if you're not in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain is still a big city by Irish standards) before I even had my Bank Account set up and various other issues, actually they gave me about two hours notice that I was moving, the morning of my medical. I started work the following day (even though the group I was with found out afterwards that we shouldn't have started until we got our furniture allowance and had moved out of the hotel and into our apartments (which were also lovely so it wasn't all bad). Then I worked for two weeks before they told me I had to go back to Abu Dhabi for some follow-up tests after my medical. Did all the necessary tests, cam back to Al Ain and was told I couldn't go back to work until the results were back. Waited until December for the results...yes December...three months later, and was told because of an "abnormal chest x-ray" I had to leave the country. Had the x-ray checked and all the test results were negative but they didn't care.

That about sums up the basics of it. To go into all the issues that people faced over there would take forever.

Luckily I managed to get a job in Oman (across the border from the UAE), passed the medical (Surprise, Surprise!!!) and have been working here since January.

silverlinings

Woah that sounds like a nightmare! I've lived in the UAE before so I know what they can be like but my god thats insane! I got my flight details yesterday so I'm flying out next week so fingers crossed everything is ok. I've been to Oman aswell,what a beautiful place! Are you in Muscat?

namurt

Best of luck with it all. Yeh, I'm in Muscat. The pay isn't as good but there's more important things in life than money, so all's well that ends well. :-)

I know you said you were already living in the UAE but for anyone else who's reading this thread I just thought of something that someone told me before I went over there and I was very glad they did. If you can at all, I would definitely recommend getting an international driving licence, it only takes a few minutes once you already have your licence. Some car rental companies will make exceptions but you're not supposed to rent a car unless you have an international licence or your residency. Residency can take quite a while to sort out and you definitely don't want to be stuck without a car.

Tom Dunne

I was transferring in Abu Dhabi this morning and couldn't help but notice the signs for people from ADEC greeting people off the Dublin flight I was on.

Best of luck to you all in your new adventure.

kala85

Whats the salary and conditions like for teachers who have started this year. Im thinking of going to dubai next year.

cmdrennan1

Hi all,

I'm new to Boards but hoping someone can helo me with a few questions.
I recently had my pre-screening call with teachaway and will have an interview some time next month.
One of the documents needs for the interview is garda vetting. When I enquired about this with the guards I was told I need to fill out an F20 form. However I got the form and it's called a 'Data Protection Access Request.'
To me this is different from garda vetting.
Did anyone else fill out this form?
Also, I recently had my degree and teaching licence signed by a notary.
Following ADEC instructions I now need them signed by the Dept. of Foreign Affairs and the Arab-Irish Chamber of Commerce. I rang the Arab-Irish Chamber of Commerce and thwy said it will cost 196 Euro to have the two documents signed!
Does this sound about right or has anyone else had a different experience.

If anyone can help me out with this it would be great!
Thanks

sparklyEyes111

cmdrennan1 wrote: »

Hi all,

I'm new to Boards but hoping someone can helo me with a few questions.
I recently had my pre-screening call with teachaway and will have an interview some time next month.
One of the documents needs for the interview is garda vetting. When I enquired about this with the guards I was told I need to fill out an F20 form. However I got the form and it's called a 'Data Protection Access Request.'
To me this is different from garda vetting.
Did anyone else fill out this form?
Also, I recently had my degree and teaching licence signed by a notary.
Following ADEC instructions I now need them signed by the Dept. of Foreign Affairs and the Arab-Irish Chamber of Commerce. I rang the Arab-Irish Chamber of Commerce and thwy said it will cost 196 Euro to have the two documents signed!
Does this sound about right or has anyone else had a different experience.

If anyone can help me out with this it would be great!
Thanks

Yeah that sounds about right.. it cost me about 200e! The joys of it.

Anyway, I've already worked in Dubai for a year so I'm well settled into UAE life... came home and there are no decent jobs. So considering going again!!! How is everyone finding ADEC? I'm considering going in January, I got offered an interview for sometime this month in Dublin... I'm going to go just to see anyway. Do more of you find it a positive experience rather than negative? I've read some bad posts and I just don't know..!! Surely It can't be as bad as they say? Most of the negative things I've heard are based in the secondary schools, or with problems with dealing with the head staff and that.

Also I was not told about that Garda vetting...?! I already have garda vetting from the Teaching Council, Surely that is the same? I also have police vetting from Dubai police when I left the UAE.

Also big question to all in ADEC at the moment: Do you need to be driving a car? If someone could answer that for me, I would be grateful!!

sparklyEyes111

namurt wrote: »

Basically every step of the way things went wrong. I was supposed to leave at the start of August but they kept sending me someone else's visa. The first time they cancelled my flight a few hours before I was due to leave. The next time they cancelled it a bit sooner. Finally, on the third attempt, at the start of September I finally got to go. Then they dumped me in with a group who had been there for weeks so I missed all of the orientation and had to try to figure everything out for myself. They moved me to Al Ain (which by the way is lovely, so don't worry if you're not in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain is still a big city by Irish standards) before I even had my Bank Account set up and various other issues, actually they gave me about two hours notice that I was moving, the morning of my medical. I started work the following day (even though the group I was with found out afterwards that we shouldn't have started until we got our furniture allowance and had moved out of the hotel and into our apartments (which were also lovely so it wasn't all bad). Then I worked for two weeks before they told me I had to go back to Abu Dhabi for some follow-up tests after my medical. Did all the necessary tests, cam back to Al Ain and was told I couldn't go back to work until the results were back. Waited until December for the results...yes December...three months later, and was told because of an "abnormal chest x-ray" I had to leave the country. Had the x-ray checked and all the test results were negative but they didn't care.

That about sums up the basics of it. To go into all the issues that people faced over there would take forever.

Luckily I managed to get a job in Oman (across the border from the UAE), passed the medical (Surprise, Surprise!!!) and have been working here since January.

Not going to ask have you asthma or anything, but I know a person that had huge problems with her medical for my former school over that. Huge.... and I don't know why. All I know is she had to get letters from her doctor at home and everything, and went to the doctor at home during Xmas to proof it wouldn't severely affect her in the UAE. Very odd.

kingdomkid

Hi guys.

A lot of you seem to have headed out in the last month or two. I know it's not a lot of time to settle in, but could you give us an idea of how it's going so far? Have you ended up in the middle of nowhere or the middle of the city? Are you in an apartment/compound/hotel? And most importantly of all, are you enjoying the experience so far? If any of the previous posters could get back with even a few lines about how its gone so far and what their situation is like I'd massively appreciate it. Lilly0907 Dublino silverlinings or anyone at all

Cheers

sparklyEyes111

kingdomkid wrote: »

Hi guys.

A lot of you seem to have headed out in the last month or two. I know it's not a lot of time to settle in, but could you give us an idea of how it's going so far? Have you ended up in the middle of nowhere or the middle of the city? Are you in an apartment/compound/hotel? And most importantly of all, are you enjoying the experience so far? If any of the previous posters could get back with even a few lines about how its gone so far and what their situation is like I'd massively appreciate it. Lilly0907 Dublino silverlinings or anyone at all

Cheers

Me also. I've an interview in 3 weeks for ADEC so would appreciate any info.

silverlinings

sorry guys I just saw these messages on the thread now.....someone asked about driving a car....I've had to rent a car to get to work.....working about 45 mins outside of abu dhabi but people are car pooling or you could be lucky and land in a school in the city so you could just get taxis if you didn't want to drive. the adec interview that I did was fine, very relaxed and they just asked how would I teach english to children who have never spoken it before, how would I deal with parents, other staff members etc. I just spoke about a print rich environment, hands on activities and all the usual stuff and well Im here so must have said something right! it is an early start i must say...Im up at 5.30, start school at 7 and from the minute you go in I find I dont have a minute to myself. the teaching is tough as in I have big class numbers but its manageable. my apartment is gorgeous!! and the fact that they give you money to furnish the place makes it easier to settle in and it feels like home faster! social life here is great.......loads to do and see!! go and do the interview is my advice and keep your options open!