Why are you interested in a position with the higher colleges of technology if you are an overseas applicant and also considering a career move to the Middle East and to the United Arab Emirates?

Answer 1

Because it isn't a bad place to work! It is actually very comparable to conditions in any lower level post secondary education as anyhwere else in the world. Do some deep research on the place, and then don't believe everything you read.

Further Information

The biggest problem with the Higher Colleges of Education is that it has lost its sense of direction. It was originally set up as a technical institution. Unfortunately, the majority of the senior managers hired to run the place come from university backgrounds, and want the place to be a university rather than a technical institution. Whereas teachers in technical institutions should really be practitioners and hold vocational qualifications in the subject they have been hired to teach, there is now a greater emphasis on hiring academics. As a result it is almost impossible to become a member of staff at HCT with vocational qualifications even if you are already a technical teacher; instead, a bachelor's degree is the minimum standard now required of teachers, but the aim is to make a master's degree the minimum standard!

Another drawback is that the overwhelming majority of the senior managers are chosen on the basis of having a PhD, rather on the basis of their leadership or managerial abilities. This is because academics believe that PhDs have natural leadership and management skills, and they form a sort of 'masonic' group . Unfortunately, while having a PhD doesn't mean that you don't have these skills, neither is it true that you do! As a result, many of the senior managers have very poor leadership and management skills. Furthermore, because there is no union to support staff members, many of the senior managers use that fact to throw their weight around and generally abuse the staff. Some, like the HCT Vice-Chancellor, and the Director of the Dubai Women's College, and many others are quite clearly psychopaths.

Yet another drawback is that some of the very senior managers are now Emiratis. These individuals have no concept of 'vocation', and believe that their staff will only work if they are kept permanently frightened. These people are often more concerned with the appearance of the college, rather than academic excellence and, so, will spend a great deal of money on advertising hordings, or on conferences, designed to show how much better HCT (and, of course, they themselves!) are in comparison with colleges elsewhere.

Having said that, the UAE is a very pleasant place to work, and working for the HCT can be very enjoyable (the students are super) providing one keeps one's head below the parapet and avoids drawing attention to oneself -being an excellent teacher or supervisor is dangerous, as you will be seen as a threat to the next level of leadership and may lead to you being fired! Supervisory positions are particularly hazardous, as they are high-profile and represent targets to more senior management.