Most staff joining us from the state-school system in the U.K. will find an interesting mix of the familiar and the unexpected.

The curriculum, resources, assessment procedures should all be very familiar. Some issues that might surprise you if you have not worked overseas in an international school before include:

• we are a privately run business. We are supervised by the local Ministry of Education, but have a great deal of freedom to formulate our own policies, procedures and strategic direction. There is no Board of Governors. Staff sometimes comment it is disconcerting to have contracts and salary cheques signed by identifiable members of the school management team, as opposed to an unseen "Authority"!
• we work hard to promote a family atmosphere in the school. Many parents have been associated with QIS for a decade or more, and feel it is "their school". This can occassionally create ambiguities when trying to adhere to a prescriptive policy or process.
• the mix of students is very international, with the majority having Arabic as their mother tongue. This presents special challenges to teachers, particularly in the Primary / Early Years areas where some students are accepted with very little grasp of English.
• students and parents are (by and large) charming, polite and well motivated. Staff in the Secondary Department especially remark on the contrast with teaching in the UK - see their comments at right.
• class sizes are small, being capped at 25 in the Primary and 20 in the Secondary. In KS4 and KS5, classes are frequently smaller.
• boys and girls are taught in separate classes in the Secondary.
• the teaching day is condensed and very intense. New staff are often horrified at the thought of starting work at 0645 a.m., but the short commute times mean that, even with meetings and afternoon activities, there are still opportunities to experience what Doha has to offer in the afternoon or evening.