Last Updated on February 18, 2020
Dubai is one of the largest emirates in the UAE. It has hosted the regional headquarters and supply chain of the world’s top multinational organizations. Since Dubai and Abu Dhabi became the center point for investors across the globe, many companies established their regional headquarters in this vibrant city. The nature of development is that the more business activities demand a safer and secure environment, therefore, security industries are thriving here along with creating many security jobs in Dubai and elsewhere in the UAE.
The Abu Dhabi government made specific changes to the security sector in 2001 by announcing the new security regulation that is called PSBD (private security business department). The regulation also applied, after that, the other five emirates, but, at the same time, Dubai introduced a new security regulation called DPS (Dubai Protective System).
You may already know that, although the policies have not changed, both departments have changed their names. PSBD to PSCOD (Privates Security Companies Organization Department) and DPS to SIRA (Security Industry Regulatory Authority).
For the last 15 years, I have been working in the security sector and closely observing the changed in the security regulation, a development in the hiring procedure and training of security officers in the UAE.
I’m writing this post based on my knowledge and my experience as a security guard to the security manager, beginning my career as a security guard in ESS and landing me as a security manager in a reputed company just like Carrefour.
What did happen after new security regulations came into the force?
The new regulation brought the security industries in the UAE into the national defense and security framework, in which country military and police forces are integrated, the most important departments in the country.
Following the revolutionary change in the private security sector of the country, the UAE and Dubai government defined the equal salary of security guards working in any size of a company despite the variation on the nationality.
You should not confuse that the salary of the PSBD and SIRA guard is equal. The security professionals who work under PSCOD regulation will get pay according to the PSCOD and the SIRA guard will get pay according to SIRA regulation. There is still a gap in salary between the two systems.
Except, the UAE national, the fair pay would apply to all the nationalities working in similar roles in private security companies. Although the basic salary is similar in all types and sized of privates security organization there is still different when it comes to Over Time calculation. If you want to know how should a company pay the extra hour of work or the Overtime, follow this link.
How the Overtime calculates in UAE for employees?
The security guards in the United Arab Emirates are more professional than the security guards in the region. Basically, the security officers in the UAE get paid more than the security officers in Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Bahrain.
The people from the developing countries especially Asia and Africa look for the security officer job in UAE mainly the candidates have prior experience in related works. If you are one of them seeking opportunity in SIRA or PSCOD guard, this post helps you to get a security officer job by giving simple tips which are more helpful to search a security guard opportunity in this country.
Before going to the market to look for security guard job vacancy in Dubai or in any part of the United Arab Emirates you must know what it requires for you to apply for the position. I know that the security guard candidates use two locations to look for security guard jobs in Dubai.
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Candidates who are already in UAE.
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Candidates who are in their home countries.
Either you are in UAE or out of it, the same tactic will work to get hiring a security guard job in Dubai. First and foremost it is very important for you to be fit mentally and physically for being the security guard, officer, supervisor even security manager and director.
Steps for Becoming a Security Guard in the UAE.
Before looking for the security guard vacancy in Dubai you should meet the mandatory criteria, otherwise, your application will not reply, even though, it was submitted in the office.
These following things need to become a security guard in Dubai.
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Your education;
Most security guards’ jobs in UAE are entry levels which usually require a high school degree. If you are looking for an edge in recruitment, you may require more education, such as a criminal justice associate degree.
2. Your skills;
- Effective communication
- Can think fast and critically
- Be mindful of the public service and the customer.
- Exercise good judgment in situations of danger
- Good knowledge of public safety and security
- Know the laws and regulations in the area of security
- Ability to Work well independently and with others
3. Physically and mentally fit;
- Height:– at least 5.6 feet for male and 5.2 feet female.
- Weight:– more than 50kg for male and 40kg for female
- Ability to perform standing and walking duties.
- You should not have any mental disorders.
- The age limit for a security guard in UAE is 21-45yrs.
4. Your background;
- You should not have any local criminal record such as felony and misdemeanor convictions.
- Must not have a national criminal record including treason and violation of the law.
- You should not have any criminal conviction record in gulf countries or internationally.
- You should qualify in case of a police background check.
5. Experiences;
The experience gives most of the values in security jobs since it makes possible to carry out security work very easily and efficiently. For being a security guard in Dubai You need to experience at least 2 years in any security company or work in military, police, and a law enforcement agency.
Upon meeting the above requirements, another important thing is to be prepared for a job search in Dubai.
Any level of positions, job hunting today is not an easy task due to the fierce competition, Here are some essential things for preparing of security guard job search in the UAE.
How to prepare for security guard jobs search in Dubai?
- Document verification: the first thing to prepare for a security guard job search is to verify your educational documents from the exam control office and ministry of the foreign affair in your home country. The final attestation should be done in your country’s consular office in the UAE. If you are UAE national or the ex-pat having a degree in the UAE do not require document verification.
- Experience certificate: To be the security guard in Dubai you must have at least two years’ experience in security, army or police forces. If you have worked in the security field or have previous experience, it is important for you to get an experience letter from those organizations you had worked with.
- Your training certificate: The training makes a security guard professional because the main goal of security-related training is to teach the security and safety skills that are useful to accomplish the security tasks on daily bases. The candidates who have done some specific training about security work, it is better to have the certificates with course completion. The candidates who possessed the security guard training certificate may become preferable candidates rather than the candidates who don’t have it.
- Take an SIRA course if possible: In UAE, You can get the SIRA training prior to recruiting from any security company but NSI training for PSCOD license is not available for the individual just like SIRA. You require to come through the security company for applying the NSI training. If you get the SIRA training which is mandatory for all the security professionals who want to perform security tasks in Dubai. It gives the plus point in your job hunting process and in the interview.
How to look for security guard jobs in Dubai?
After you have prepared your job hunting, you should now use different tactics and strategies in order to find a job in Dubai. Some of them are;
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Be Less dependent online job search.
Many people use online tools to find security jobs in Dubai which is a very less effective method itself. When you search online security guard jobs in Dubai the tons of results will pop up most of them are fake.
The online job portals which post security guard opportunities regularly are not legal. For example, I found a security manager opening in a job portal for Transguard security, I don’t want to disclose the name of the job portal now, I called the Transguard office but there were not any vacancies.
You should be clear that the fraud job portal, with the hidden intention, makes you register on their website, upload your CV and collect your information while applying for the position. After collecting enough information they can scam you at any time.
So, it is important for you to find the legit job portals which have been living online for many years and have physical offices in the UAE. Give some time to research about the legality and reliability of the website. If you want to know the top recruitment agencies in UAE click here.
2. Apply for a job on the company website only.
If you want to apply for a security officer job online, visit the company website and go to the career section to find the current opening. When you find on it apply for the position with uploading the required documents.
3. Use closecareer.com as the job hunting tool.
This website has been lived online for giving you information about the jobs available on the companies website. You are not required to register in it to apply for any position. We do not ask you to upload your CV too. When you find any job opportunities published on it just click the apply button you would redirect to the employer company and go for the further process.
4. List down the security companies in the UAE.
Visit the PSBD or SIRA website to find the licensed security companies in UAE. Figures out which company has operating licenses from both departments. When you join the company that has PSBD and SIRA guard supplying license you can be SIRA to PSBD guard in the future. To get more information regarding the licensed security companies in UAE to visit the following links.
5. Get information from your friend
Even on their website, a security company may not publish its requirements online. Your friends that already work in the security field can become a very important weapon to inform you about vacancies, interview dates, and application methods as well as the salary.
Not only your friends provide the information regarding the Dubai security guard job and salary but also recommend you for the position to the hiring manager.
6. Apply for a job as possible as in the office.
Make a list of the top and largest security companies in the UAE. Prepare your professional CV and the cover letter. (get professional security guard CV?) Go to the company office and submit your application or leave your CV to the hiring manager. They will contact you for future opportunities if there are no current vacancies.
7. Prepare for the interview.
Interview success depends on the level of preparation so that you should prepare yourself before you go to the interview. It is hard for getting a call for an interview from the possible employers. The lack of the interview preparation leads you to fail in that interview, hence, here are some security guard interview preparation tips click here.
8. Be prepared for the common interview questions.
Every interview the interviewers ask some common questions to know about basic things of the candidates including the educations, experiences, and skills. If you do not give the answer as the interviewer satisfaction, you would lose the interview, so, practice the potential common questions with a sweet and short answer.
In doing so, you can answer the interview questions quickly and effectively. To study, the common questions of the security guard interview follow this link. Common security guard interview questions and answers.
9. Prepare for the specific security guard questions.
Just like the common interview questions, the interviewers ask you certain specific questions related to your job. When you answering these questions include you past experience. Here are very important interview model questions for the security guard.
20 security guard specific interview questions and answers.
10. Training, test, and license.
This is the last section of the security guard job hunting process in Dubai or all across the UAE. After selecting as a security guard through the interview the training come second What types of training you are going to take depends on what security guard system you have chosen.
You have to pass the test given in SIRA to get the license. If you have an opportunity to be a security guard in Dubai you should go for training in the SIRA cadre academy.
If you succeed in the PSCOD guard interview, you would go for the NSI training and the PSCOD test after then you would get license for security guard.
Conclusion: The search for security guard jobs in Dubai is somewhat difficult; it takes longer than 15 days to be a security guard in this country. The interview isn’t difficult if you practice possible questions, but finding a job in this market is difficult than seeking vacancies online.