Dependent expatriates teaching at international and local schools in the Saudi capital are preparing for the Saudi Ministry of Education (MoE) and Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE) qualification interviews to be held this month.

A computer educator teaching at an international primary school in Riyadh, who requested anonymity, told Arab News that she was preparing for the interview next week.

“Our principal said the MoE will interview us, so we went to our embassy on Saturday and secured some of the official requirements, as well as reviewed the subjects we are teaching,” she said, adding: “We are a bit nervous, but passing the interview will give us a chance to keep our jobs.”

The Ministry of Labor (MoL) earlier stated that dependent applicants who want to work as educators in the Kingdom must make sure that their academic and professional certificates are authenticated by the MOE and MoHE. They should also produce a certificate from the foreign affairs department of their home countries to prove the authenticity of their documents. Additionally, the applicant must be in the age group of 19 to 39 years and must have an iqama.

Moreover, the qualifications of the applicants must match the subjects they teach assuming that they pass the interview.

According to some dependent teachers, they do not want to lose their jobs because, aside from salaries and other benefits, it keeps them away from the boredom of staying at home, as most of them are housewives under the sponsorship of their husbands.

Others said that they feel bad about leaving their students and colleagues, as they had become attached to them.

Meanwhile, sources from Philippine International schools in Riyadh told Arab News that some of their teachers will also undergo the qualification interview with the MOE and MoHE and are still waiting for the memorandum regarding the schedule.