United Arab Emirates University
United Arab Emirates University
United Arab Emirates University, established in 1976 by the nation's founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan under Federal Law 4 of that year, is the oldest and highest-ranked national university in the United Arab Emirates. Located in the oasis city of Al Ain in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, UAEU is a federal, publicly funded research university that teaches across nine colleges: Business and Economics, Education, Engineering, Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Humanities and Social Sciences, Information Technology, Law, Medicine and Health Sciences, and Science. In the Spring 2025 term 17,722 students were registered, 16,240 of them undergraduates and 71 percent of them women, taught on a modern, technology-rich campus by a faculty of 645 academics who all hold doctorates from accredited institutions. Instruction is primarily in English, on an American-style credit-hour system, with Arabic used for programmes such as law and Arabic studies. UAEU is institutionally accredited by the UAE Commission for Academic Accreditation and by the WASC Senior College and University Commission, whose July 2025 Commission Action Letter continues its reaffirmation cycle to 2031-32. Its programmes carry a wide range of international accreditation, including ABET for engineering since 1999 and for computing, AACSB for business since 2000, and ACPE for the PharmD. The university reached 217th in the QS World University Rankings 2027, positioning it as the UAE's leading national research institution as it marks its 50th year.
4 years · Undergraduate
4 years · Undergraduate
4 years · Undergraduate
4 years · Undergraduate
4 years · Undergraduate
4 years · Undergraduate
UAEU is a federal university, so Emirati students are typically sponsored by the UAE government and pay little or no tuition. Self-funded and international students pay per credit hour: the undergraduate international rate is AED 2,661 per credit hour for 2026/2027, which works out to roughly AED 80,000 to 88,000 per year depending on the programme, with engineering and law degrees carrying more credit hours. Taught master's programmes range from about AED 1,600 to 3,660 per credit hour, and a graduate application fee of AED 200 applies. Generous merit scholarships, including full and partial Chancellor's Scholarships, can waive 50 to 100 percent of tuition for high-achieving students. Rates are set annually by the Student Account Office and exclude VAT.
A Grade 12 average of 98% or above with TOEFL iBT 105 / IELTS 7.5 and SAT-Math 730 (most colleges); maintain a CGPA of 3.8.
A Grade 12 average of 95% or above with TOEFL iBT 85 / IELTS 6.5 and SAT-Math 660; maintain a CGPA of 3.6.
Evidence of exceptional talent (certificates and awards); maintain a CGPA of 3.6.
Evidence of talent; maintain a CGPA of 2.75.
Confirmation of parent employment at UAEU.
Merit-based graduate assistantships, fellowships and PhD scholarships awarded through the College of Graduate Studies.
Admission to UAEU is competitive and merit-based, assessed on the General Secondary School Certificate (Grade 12) with subject-specific thresholds in English, mathematics and science rather than an overall average. Applicants qualify on their Grade 12 subject percentages or on equivalent tests such as IELTS, TOEFL, SAT, AP, IB or A-Levels. Undergraduate applications for UAE nationals route through the Ministry of Higher Education portal, while UAEU runs its own graduate application portal.
Confirm your Grade 12 completion and the college-specific subject thresholds in English, mathematics and science.
Sit IELTS Academic or TOEFL if you are not qualifying on your Grade 12 English percentage, and SAT, AP, IB or A-Level mathematics and science where used in place of Grade 12 marks.
Apply online (the Ministry portal for undergraduates, the UAEU portal for graduate study), pay the application fee and upload your documents.
Provide attested certificates and the UAE Ministry of Education equivalency certificate for non-UAE curricula.
Complete any extra steps required by your college, such as the MD entrance exam and Multiple Mini Interviews for Medicine and Veterinary Medicine.
Receive the admission decision, complete registration and, for international students, begin university-sponsored residence-visa processing.
A second intake; classes begin Monday 4 January 2027.
A short summer session; classes begin 24 May 2027 and the semester ends 29 June 2027.
Fall Term Begins: Start of the 2026/2027 academic year. Verify application deadlines on the UAEU admission portal.
Spring Term Begins: Registration for the Spring semester opens 2 November 2026.
Summer Session: Summer classes run 24 May to 29 June 2027.
United Arab Emirates University sponsors the UAE student residence visa for admitted international students. The visa is issued after arrival for one year and is renewable on proof of continued study. Admitted full-time international students provide financial proof, the Ministry of Education equivalency certificate and a medical fitness declaration; students who are dependents on a UAE-resident parent's visa may study under that sponsorship instead.
UAEU offers a full residential campus experience in Al Ain, with more than 40 student clubs, extensive sports and structured career and wellbeing support. Facilities, housing and many activities are gender-segregated, and a dedicated Center for Career Placement and Alumni connects students to internships and employers across government and industry.
University housing is provided for registered undergraduate students from outside Al Ain, in separate male and female residences located around the city. UAEU does not provide accommodation for graduate students.
The Center for Career Placement and Alumni (CCPA) supports students with individual and group career counselling, workshops and assessments, on-campus interviews, career and employer days, and internships and work-integrated learning through the iWIL system, with programmes developed in partnership with employers.
United Arab Emirates University occupies a single modern campus in Al Ain, described by the university as a state-of-the-art new campus, with teaching and research laboratories, specialised research centres across its nine colleges, a large central library and the National Medical Library, on-campus student housing and extensive sports facilities. The campus has gender-segregated sections and served 17,722 students taught by 645 faculty in the Spring 2025 term.
The central university library in the Crescent Building, providing circulation, reference, information-literacy and course-reserve services plus extensive electronic resources.
The first medical library in the UAE, at the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, serving medical students, faculty and health professionals.
Specialised research centers across the nine colleges supporting UAEU's research-university mission in water, energy, health, materials and more.
High-tech teaching and research laboratories across the Colleges of Science, Engineering and IT.
Male and female computer laboratories with campus-wide wireless internet.
Medical education, clinical-skills and simulation facilities at the College of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Two health clubs, one for men and one for women, each with a 50-metre Olympic indoor swimming pool.
Football, basketball, volleyball, tennis, table tennis, squash and badminton facilities, plus boxing, kickboxing and chess.
Chancellor
Chancellor of United Arab Emirates University and Adviser for Cultural Affairs at the UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs, serving as the university's titular head.
Vice-Chancellor
Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs (Provost)
Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Finance and Administration (Secretary General)
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United Arab Emirates University, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Street, Asharej, Al Ain, P.O. Box 15551, Abu Dhabi, UAE
