# Abu Dhabi Job Offer



## hoveactually (Dec 26, 2012)

Greetings all!

Following a recent interview I have received a job offer, which, whilst seemingly attractive at first, may not be as good as I initially thought, especially when the cost of living in Abu Dhabi is quite high.

I am still very interested in the position, which deals with sponsorship and fundraising for the Abu Dhabi International Festival, but would welcome other expats comments on whether they feel the package is workable / live-able:

Basic Salary: 12K AED / month
Accommodation Allowance: 6K AED / month
Travel Allowance: 2K AED / month

(plus medical insurance, 1 return flight to the UK each year and return shipping costs for furniture as long as I stay with them for 2 years!)

Personally, I feel that the salary is a little on the low side (although it does equate with what any larger not-for-profit organisation would pay in London for someone with my experience), so I am hoping to push the basic up slightly.

Job terms and conditions notwithstanding, I find myself more concerned about finding decent accommodation (I would only need a studio or 1-bed, but would ideally like to find a professional flat-share first, if such things exist), the additional costs of having to purchase white goods, furniture, etc., whether I will need a car (I don't really want one, unless absolutely necessary)... as for internet connectivity, I didn't even know what a VPN was until I started reading through these forums. Argh!

Am I fretting unduly? Do all the positives of living in Abu Dhabi make up for my perceived stress and anxiety about the peripherals of life there?

Any help, tips or advice from anyone who has been through all this, especially recently, would be greatly and gratefully received.


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## AlexDhabi (Aug 23, 2012)

Depending on your lifestyle you could save money on that, but I agree I think it is a relatively low offer. Your main issue will be finding accommodation in budget yet in a location where you don't need to run a car. You can get a new 1 bed for your budget but it will probably not be very central/convenient. Taxi fares are reasonable in the city but can mount up. 
For example, I live on Reem Island and if I did not have a car I would be paying 60 AED round trip to work each day (over 10 GBP a day). But one month's petrol costs me about 100 AED. I spent my first 18 months in Abu Dhabi without a car and at the time I lived within walking distance of work, but the city is still made for the car and the hot weather means a car is also cool as well as convenient. I cannot imagine anyone who has a car in the UK would want to go without a car in UAE.


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## james79 (Jan 9, 2013)

*go for it*

12k basic is pretty low, so maybe you could try and get a couple of thousand more. You can live a good lifestyle here on that but you won’t be flying overseas on holidays much, as flights from here are quite expensive. And I’m not sure how much you will save. 72k a year will get you a studio or 1-bed in most places, but not the high-end developments. Maybe you could try living close to work, so that you could walk to work. That way it’s only in the very hot summer months when you might need to get a taxi (which are very cheap). 

I moved here nine months ago from the UK and have no regrets whatsoever. There are a lot of positives about living in Abu Dhabi, and there are a lot of things you can do for either free, or not much money. Making friends has been easy too, as a lot of people are in the same boat as you. I think try and get a few more grand on the basic and go for it.
lane:


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## Ivelhurst (Dec 23, 2012)

I agree with all of the above. You need to push for more basic if you can and remember this will also affect your end of service benefits as this is based on your basic salary. Also, you could check if there is any annual increments at all, how many days leave etc.
The lifestyle is good and the weather is a bonus - even the summers are not that bad as the country is well geared up for extreme heat. Just use your common sense - please dress appropriately. We still see a lot of Brits coming out here (and others) roaming around in gear that would even make people in Europe take a second look. It is a Muslim country so if you just use a little bit of sensitivity in that regard you will have a good life.


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