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I have been looking in every direction for a job.
I mean earlier you could at lest get something but nowadays jobs are already reserved and then advertised
I keep applying on bayt and monstergulf but have not received a single call for the last 3 years
I mean how hard is it to find a decent job ?

What ur profession?

Maybe it's coz youre looking for a job that doesn't exist...

Would help to know what your profession/qualifications are, how you are presenting yourself and your cv.

whats the format of a cv here in dubai anyway? does it need to have arabic typed also?

I wonder the same thing. Been looking for more than a month since I got laid off, but I got nothing despite of tens of applications. Being in Dubai myself still, doesn't help much (good luck if you're not residing in UAE, that would be tougher). Got few calls from agents but no follow up. Even one of them (Core Elements) was trying to scam me off.

Not sad but rather confusing since normally for many past years people sought and offered me jobs. I almost never sought for a job myself, even mostly the interview were done by phone.

I still feel confident with my experience and skills, though I wonder if either the job market is not up for my specific field (IT in Retail/Supply Chain) or maybe I'm just overqualified (hey I have discounted my expected salary from my previous one)

I'm still staying here for another couple of months for some reasons. I hope I nail one by then.

To put it simply : Very

Wife, although a qualified professional with good solid experience has been doing this since January and still no luck.

Ironcially she has had the same experience mentioned here. Has been applying through Bayt/bait ? and monstergulf, no response from that side yet and also Core elements also setup a interview aswell LOL, dunno about.

She has had around 3 interviews in 3 months. She did change jobs a few times before and didn't take more than a week to start getting calls for interiviews and 15 days to a months before landing a good offer.

Quite possibly the job market is over saturated at the moment, which makes it good news for the employers and bad news for the jobs seekers as more and more will become desperate and settle for shitty offers

Good luck to everyone. Don't lose hope. If its meant to happen it will

portland wrote:whats the format of a cv here in dubai anyway? does it need to have arabic typed also?

You don't need your CV in arabic.

I am SO GLAD to hear everyone's misery posts so far...

Reason being, I landed here the week of the Global meltdown and had a HORRIFIC time trying to get interviews going...
I thought it was just me, even though I had ample experience and education...

1000 applications and 0 'real' phone calls later, I got a job through someone I met. The recruitment agents are hardly worth it and read off a sheet of paper...

My advice: Get out there and network yourself. BAYT and MG are a hunk of shite in this market...

I think you need to have several CVs in hand where you can show that your experience, knowledge and skills are transferrable to other areas and then submit accordingly.

Grammar and accuracy is very important on a CV. If you have someone who is a professional have them take a look at it or invest in a book on writing CVs or do online homework. See if you have find CVs on line that you can use as a model for you own.

There are certain key words that need to be used when describing "Responsibilities" or "Job Description".

If you can hang on until June or July I think that jobs will open as there may be an exodus and alot of those people were not made redundant, just leaving Dubai and waiting for the kiddies to finish school.

Good luck to all you job hunters. I wish you the best.

Bora Bora wrote:I think you need to have several CVs in hand where you can show that your experience, knowledge and skills are transferrable to other areas and then submit accordingly.

Grammar and accuracy is very important on a CV. If you have someone who is a professional have them take a look at it or invest in a book on writing CVs or do online homework. See if you have find CVs on line that you can use as a model for you own.

There are certain key words that need to be used when describing "Responsibilities" or "Job Description".

If you can hang on until June or July I think that jobs will open as there may be an exodus and alot of those people were not made redundant, just leaving Dubai and waiting for the kiddies to finish school.

Good luck to all you job hunters. I wish you the best.

Helpful post.

I disagree on the timing though... July is getting close to Ramadan when things go on shutdown. If you cannot find something by the end of June, I suggest the jobseekers hop on a flight back home and leave themselves some time to find a job there.

I think now is the right time: May, June. After Ramadan, depending on the economic climate, many companies will stay put (in terms of hiring) until the new year.

Just my $0.02

If you guys are hell bent on staying in Dubai ( like me) then this is a fine oppurtunity to pursue ur educational goals! Dubai offers a lot, so give it a shot. I'm in the job hunt too.....No jobs? No problem, I'll charge more when I do land a job. I'm confident of my skills and by year end, education wise, I'll be in a very elite bracket!
My point basically is if ur hanging on in Dubai, use ur time productively!

Misery Called Life wrote:If you guys are hell bent on staying in Dubai ( like me) then this is a fine oppurtunity to pursue ur educational goals! Dubai offers a lot, so give it a shot. I'm in the job hunt too.....No jobs? No problem, I'll charge more when I do land a job. I'm confident of my skills and by year end, education wise, I'll be in a very elite bracket!
My point basically is if ur hanging on in Dubai, use ur time productively!

Good positive thinking MCL. Good luck to you.

Good luck to you MCL, but there is only so much you can learn in the classroom...


Having said that, there is nothing like higher education!

It's an employers market at the moment, they can pick and choose and basically offer whatever salaries they want.

Recruitment agencies are having a tough time too you know. My housemate works in recruitment, and she is bombarded by applications every single day, and no she can't get back to everyone, because guess what, for every job, there are literally thousands of applicants.

I hear about her nightmare at work,e very day. People are unrealistic in their expectations, and apply for jobs they haven't got a hope in hell of getting.

So it works both ways unfortunately.

desertdudeshj wrote:more will become desperate and settle for shitty offers

naahhh... i'm not going to have more shitty life in this shitty place. when there's no way, i'd rather going back to home country with "not so much" salary but "better" life.

Misery Called Life wrote:If you guys are hell bent on staying in Dubai ( like me) then this is a fine oppurtunity to pursue ur educational goals! Dubai offers a lot, so give it a shot. I'm in the job hunt too.....No jobs? No problem, I'll charge more when I do land a job. I'm confident of my skills and by year end, education wise, I'll be in a very elite bracket!
My point basically is if ur hanging on in Dubai, use ur time productively!

exactly. i'm also currently going for training and certification, though i was a bit hesitate in the first place to spend my own money (thousands of dirhams) in this difficult situation.

this place is rather strange! people look for theories & papers (degrees, certification) rather than best experience & skills, even in technical fields. and yet they're still paying below "standards"!

This will be job-specific but many (maybe most?) employers will ask for a CV but would actually prefer to have a résumé. The difference is mainly in the length of the document.

I think most people here do not know of this difference and since the term "CV" is more popular in this part of the world than "résumé", they ask for CVs indiscriminately. MDs, nurses, researchers, and architects may benefit from a CV but I would certainly prefer a brief résumé for most jobs, even highly technical ones like in IT.

CV - Resume, surely they are the same?

They're not. A CV is comprehensive whereas a résumé only has the highlights. I personally don't care to know about most candidates' high school extracurricular activities nor their race, religion, or marital status.

The boody employers here ( more so in the pvt sector) know not what they seek. Bloody illetrates if you ask me, who landed the job either through influence or spreading their legs. It may sound harsh, but is very prevalent.
The problem is that Dubai needs to have Dubai standards. You have people from all over the world coming here, in one company the recruiting manager is Indian, in another Lebanese...everyone has different expectations.
In many companies the HR manager butts in and tries and recruits, especially Indians on an ego drive.
The market here is still in a nascent stage, with time will grow up.
I normally submit a CV, cuz thats what's asked.

What kind of courses are people looking for to prepare for their next jobs these days in Dubai ?

Any ideas on how to network for those who are looking for jobs in Dubai.

kinda hard here without connections or unless u have a lot of experience

What about the headhunters?

khawar wrote:What kind of courses are people looking for to prepare for their next jobs these days in Dubai ?

Any ideas on how to network for those who are looking for jobs in Dubai.

As far as courses go...I'm a finance guy. So I'm kinda loading up on the certifications. Ther's lots to learn in the finance space!

deadlife wrote:I have been looking in every direction for a job.
I mean earlier you could at lest get something but nowadays jobs are already reserved and then advertised
I keep applying on bayt and monstergulf but have not received a single call for the last 3 years
I mean how hard is it to find a decent job ?

Case of 8 out of 10 people here. Don't lose heart.... something somewhere is kept for you... Even if you don't go there... it will come to you.

Don't give up! Good luck.