Dubai Forums Dubai Expat Forums Dubai Expat Help Forum

Hello everyone,

I have some questions regarding employment in Dubai. I'm starting to collect information about living in Dubai, and I was kinda hoping someone would have some answers to theses questions.

I am canadian, 33yo, single, no children. I worked in IT for the past 15 years, mostly in networking (tcp/ip -cisco), system administration (unix, all flavours) and security (auditing -ISO17799, ... and lots of technical experience (sso, firewalls, vpn, name it). I also have experience in project management. My native language is french, although I'm fluent in english.

I worked and lived in different cities around the world: Quebec city, Montreal, Paris (France), Vancouver (Canada) and well, I'm obviously looking for something new and challenging.

Questions now:

- What annual salary should I expect from a good offer? (without housing / car allowances).

- How hard is it to find jobs in IT? (either networking, sysadmin or security)

- Where is the best place to search for employment in the IT industry? Some say headhunters are the way to go, but.... really?

- Can you live and work in Dubai without a car, only relying on public transportation and/or taxis? (I just hate to pay for a car if public transports are reliable)

- How is the life of a single person in Dubai? (I'm born catholic, although I don't practice any religion). I know the nightlife is most likely not the same as Las Vegas, but any chances to meet single women?

I'm really really eager to move in Dubai, just need more information to go ahead. Hopefully I'll be there soon!

Thanks in advance for reading this and providing some answers. It will really help at this point.

(p.s. sorry if some of these questions are already answered somewhere in the site. I did a search, but didn't find answers close enough to what I'm looking for.

Dude,

Not to be harsh but I will.

Are you really 33 years old? On reading your questions it seems you have done absolutely no research on employment here or Dubai. A simple reading of the posts on this forum (Start from the announcements and stickies and work your way down) will provide you a wealth of information.

About 6 months ago a 19 year old posted similar questions and I gladly answered them (you'll find those on your search). But he was 19

Many of the DF members have posted very useful information but no one can give you the specifics. For instance 10K/month would be a great salary for some and an "insult" to other, etc. etc.

Best of luck to you. By the way there are lots of Kannucks here who can help you out with "comparisons". You have to do your homework first.

i love the way you break the ice

i vote concord for president

I don't want to be harsh as well but I will.

Concord wrote:Dude,
Are you really 33 years old?

Yes. (Ok, it's not harsh... yet)

Concord wrote:On reading your questions it seems you have done absolutely no research on employment here or Dubai.

Learn to read:

droyer wrote:I'm starting to collect information about living in Dubai (...)

Concord wrote:About 6 months ago a 19 year old posted similar questions and I gladly answered them (you'll find those on your search). But he was 19

So, someone curious and looking at many ways to obtain answers is necessarly someone young? Happy not to live in your world, it must be either very boring or filled with unjustified judgments.

Concord wrote:Many of the DF members have posted very useful information but no one can give you the specifics. For instance 10K/month would be a great salary for some and an "insult" to other, etc. etc.

That's why I posted a brief summary of my experience, hoping someone with the same experience (or roughly) could read this and answer.

I'm sorry, I traveled a lot, I lived in different cities AND different cultures already. Everytime I search for information about a place I wish to go, I found that discussing and getting fresh answers from people in forums is the best way to go.

Anyways, I tried to be courteous and polite in my post, expecting the same from people answering. I guess it was too much. I usually find that kind of harsh behaviors where 19yo people do go, I really didn't expect to be flamed here.

Next time, if you're having a bad moment or if you don't feel like answering a post, just don't. I assure you, people won't cry if you don't.

By the way, thanks Bleakus, your reply is exactly the type of answer I'm looking for. But I will do my "homeworks" and try to read more. Although it is hard to find someone with the same bagage and experience as I do.

Hi Drover,

firstly good luck, I will now attempt to answer some of your questions.

droyer wrote:Questions now:

- What annual salary should I expect from a good offer? (without housing / car allowances).

Hrmmm IT is a hard nut to crack in Dubai and I won't mince my words in telling you why. Because of the close proximity to India, there are literally hundreds of thousands of qualified Indians looking for IT positions and they're willing to work for wages substantially lower than what you'd expect from a similar position in the west.

A lot of these people work for sub 10,000 dh per month (some sub 5)

- How hard is it to find jobs in IT? (either networking, sysadmin or security)

I can't speak from personal experience, but it's not the easiest field for sure, see the point above. It is definitely one where you need to network (the other kind), and put the feelers out.

- Where is the best place to search for employment in the IT industry? Some say headhunters are the way to go, but.... really?

The short answer is everywhere. If you're mad keen, then leave no stone unturned.

* Job sites
* Headhunters
* Classified Ads (Gulf News, Khaleej Times)
* Cold calling
* Emailing your CV
* Networking

Everything.

- Can you live and work in Dubai without a car, only relying on public transportation and/or taxis? (I just hate to pay for a car if public transports are reliable)

You can... but it's not easy. Dubai's public transport consists of a haphazard bus system and taxis. There is a metro planned but some speculate it will be as useful as a chocolate teapot. Heat is another factor to consider... do you want to be standing in 45 degree heat, in a suit, waiting for a taxi/bus?

- How is the life of a single person in Dubai? (I'm born catholic, although I don't practice any religion). I know the nightlife is most likely not the same as Las Vegas, but any chances to meet single women?

There's lots of chances to meet single women but many have bemoaned that Dubai is a terrible place to meet a partner. It depends on your thing. It is the Las Vegas of the middle east, minus the gambling of course. There are heaps of nightclubs that cater to most tastes. If you're an outgoing guy, you should be fine.

I'm really really eager to move in Dubai, just need more information to go ahead. Hopefully I'll be there soon!

Just be sure of the reason why you want to move to Dubai. It's not easy, and despite what some say, the streets aren't paved with gold. $100k US jobs are not the norm, and it's certainly not *easy*.

Therefore, get it in your head why, and take it from there.

Awesome.

Thanks a lot Ian. I expected the IT field to be hard because of India, just wasn't sure how hard it was. It makes total sense though. I guess experience is where you can make a difference.

I'm looking to relocate soon, Dubai is an option but I have 3 other cities in mind. I'm more of a "start-up" guy, and that's basically why I'm looking at places where I could still have projects to build (in opposition of doing 'boring' maintenance/operations work).

Thanks again !

droyer wrote:I don't want to be harsh as well but I will.

Concord wrote:Dude,
Are you really 33 years old?

Yes. (Ok, it's not harsh... yet)

Concord wrote:On reading your questions it seems you have done absolutely no research on employment here or Dubai.

Learn to read:

droyer wrote:I'm starting to collect information about living in Dubai (...)

Concord wrote:About 6 months ago a 19 year old posted similar questions and I gladly answered them (you'll find those on your search). But he was 19

So, someone curious and looking at many ways to obtain answers is necessarly someone young? Happy not to live in your world, it must be either very boring or filled with unjustified judgments.

Concord wrote:Many of the DF members have posted very useful information but no one can give you the specifics. For instance 10K/month would be a great salary for some and an "insult" to other, etc. etc.

That's why I posted a brief summary of my experience, hoping someone with the same experience (or roughly) could read this and answer.

I'm sorry, I traveled a lot, I lived in different cities AND different cultures already. Everytime I search for information about a place I wish to go, I found that discussing and getting fresh answers from people in forums is the best way to go.

Anyways, I tried to be courteous and polite in my post, expecting the same from people answering. I guess it was too much. I usually find that kind of harsh behaviors where 19yo people do go, I really didn't expect to be flamed here.

Next time, if you're having a bad moment or if you don't feel like answering a post, just don't. I assure you, people won't cry if you don't.

By the way, thanks Bleakus, your reply is exactly the type of answer I'm looking for. But I will do my "homeworks" and try to read more. Although it is hard to find someone with the same bagage and experience as I do.

Glad I could help. Anytime buddy. Reading lesssons are going swell thanks for the advice.

Bleakus wrote:http://www.du.ae

Are DU still hiring?

I never find anything on there website.

jabbajabba wrote:

Bleakus wrote:http://www.du.ae

Are DU still hiring?

I never find anything on there website.

Maybe Bleakus is "recruting"

jabbajabba wrote:

Bleakus wrote:http://www.du.ae

Are DU still hiring?

I never find anything on there website.

Maybe Bleakus is "recruting"

jabbajabba wrote:

Bleakus wrote:http://www.du.ae

Are DU still hiring?

I never find anything on there website.

Maybe Bleakus is "recruting"

Questions now:

- What annual salary should I expect from a good offer? (without housing / car allowances).

50%+ above what you're getting now. The kicker however is that there
is no income tax. If you're coming from Canada, I would strongly encourage you to seek out offshore banking options. Google "IBC" and offshore accounts and you should see stuff pop up.

- How hard is it to find jobs in IT? (either networking, sysadmin or security)

Depends on how talented you are. When it comes to IT, you're competing against people from other markets who are willing to be paid significantly less than you. So from an IT perspective, don't expect much. If your experience is highly specialized then you can expect less competition. You can have lots of Cisco experience, but unless you're near CCIE level, don't expect much IMO.

- Where is the best place to search for employment in the IT industry? Some say headhunters are the way to go, but.... really?

Headhunters are always an option. Monster, workopolis, etc... they might have dubai related jobs. just do a search.

- Can you live and work in Dubai without a car, only relying on public transportation and/or taxis? (I just hate to pay for a car if public transports are reliable)

you need a car.

- How is the life of a single person in Dubai? (I'm born catholic, although I don't practice any religion). I know the nightlife is most likely not the same as Las Vegas, but any chances to meet single women?

Don't come here expecting to meet women. There are none here, and the ones that are worth going after have more than enough guys trying to get with them.

well du is an isp that use alot of cisco stuff, might be familiar to work with

djl wrote:Questions now:

Don't come here expecting to meet women. There are none here, and the ones that are worth going after have more than enough guys trying to get with them.

If however, you are as good looking as me you will be beating them off with a shitty stick!

XPClone wrote:

djl wrote:Questions now:

Don't come here expecting to meet women. There are none here, and the ones that are worth going after have more than enough guys trying to get with them.

If however, you are as good looking as me you will be beating them off with a shitty stick!

Did you say you beat off with your shitty stick?

That's sick man.