joeboy101

Hello all

An odd title but hopefully I can glean something from the wealth of advice that comes from this forum.

My girlfriend is a Pharmacist (3months fully qualified) and I am a corporate financier with 3 years experience at a top US investment bank based in London. Given the dire state of the economy here we are looking to do something a little more adventurous over the next 2-3 years and are contemplating a move to the Middle East.

I would be looking for a job in the same sector however my girlfriend (not being proficient in Arabic) would not be able to practice but hopefully there would be other options available to her: drug rep for a large PharmaCo?

Questions are: 1) Are investment banks/financial advisory boutiques/private equity suffering as much as they are in the UK/US? What are the job prospects like for somebody of my age/qualifications. 2) Is there anybody involved or know of somebody in the Pharma sector working in the Middle East who could provide some useful ideas on opportunities. 3) What else should I be thinking about before making such a big change?

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.

Blue Cat

I can't advise on the banking sector.

Tell you girlfriend to do a search on Healthcare city and to bang her CV off to all the reputable drug companies. Wyeth, Pharma Zeneca etc all have a presence in the UAE. They pay really well too!!

Welcome and good luck

(cohabitation is techically illegal)

al dente

ADIA are still recruiting. Depends on your background.

joeboy101

Thanks for the responses. Can you elaborate on background required? I assume being proficient in Arabic?

Madam Medusa

investment companies are suffering here, i know of a number of people who have recently been made redundant...defo not a good time to be looking...

MM, xx

al dente

I mean areas worked within banking. If you pm me with your details i might be able to help re recruitment agencies or names.

joeboy101

Thanks MM, however where is it a good place to be looking? Certainly not London, New York, Hong Kong. So the question really is, on a relative basis is the UAE a better place to be?

Blue Cat

find me a British Expat who is fluent in arabic, they are few and far between and tend to be the ones who have married Arabs.

Madam Medusa

no i don't think it's a better place to be, it's very expensive here, and we still haven't seen anywhere near the full impact i don't think...
that said, no harm in looking and if you find a job, then all well and good...i've got some recruitment company contacts somewhere, will pm them to you if i can find them...

MM, xx

Blue Cat

I agree I think there is worse to come here

Cairo.Luxor

I am always astounded at the lack of expats who (at least) try to speak Arabic. It's disgraceful IMO. Look at the way the Brits treated foreigners who couldn't speak English? 'What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander'!

I'm 80% fluent and I didn't marry an Arab... but I'm also male and in Egypt

Madam Medusa

maybe egypt is different, but if you're in the investment industry here, for example, it's mostly westerners or indians...hindi would be extremely useful by all accounts...

MM, xx

bimcnorth

I´d say that the financial sector in UAE in general is suffering somewhat..but there ain´t a bloodbath like almost everywhere else.

Many are still recruiting though (in particular Abu Dhabi and Saudi institutions) but the drawback is that right now they got a lot more people to choose from.

Being able to speak arabic is optional but not that important.

Madam Medusa

i've pmd you with contact details, btw...you should be able to access it i hope now you've got 3 posts...

MM, xx

Shehryar

I think China and India might be safer 'career' bets in the long-term; however, they are not a patch on Dubai as 'places to live in', and do not offer the lifestyle and other advantages that that the UAE, Bahrain or even Qatar have.