Dubai to have 10 more schools
FEES TO RANGE FROM DH19,200 TO DH130,000 PER YEAR; OPENING OF NEW SCHOOLS SHOWS GROWTH OF THE ECONOMY, KHDA CHIEF SAYS
Fees to vary from Dh19,200 to Dh130,000 in institutions offering UK, Indian, IB, French, US curriculums
Ten new schools offering British, Indian, IB, French, Canadian and American curriculums are set to open across Dubai from September, it was announced yesterday.
As well as varying curriculums, the schools will have different price points.
Among the 10 new schools, the Newlands School in Al Warqa, which will follow the UK curriculum, will charge fees of Dh19,200 to Dh26,400 per year.
At the most expensive school on the list, the North London Collegiate School Dubai in Meydan City, which will follow the International Baccalaureate, fees will range from Dh83,000 to Dh130,000.
The emirate’s education regulator, the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), believes that the schools will help parents have more choices.
“That Dubai continues to attract high numbers of new schools and new residents speaks to the growth of our economy, and to the trust that parents and school operators have in the quality of education offered here.” said Abdullah Al Karam, KHDA Director-General.
The schools will offer “highquality teaching and learning across a variety of locations, price points and curricula, and will help to meet the need for more school places in Dubai,” added Kalthoum Al Beloushi, the Executive Director of Education Development at KHDA.
The average rate of enrolment in Dubai’s private schools sector has increased by 6.6 per cent annually over the last 10 years. In total, 72 new schools have opened since 2007.
The KHDA data shows that new schools typically fill 60 per cent of places after four years of operation, and 80 per cent after seven years. The news of the new schools could come as a relief for parents struggling with the prospect of higher fees.
Last week, the KHDA, which has carried out inspections of 159 of 185 private schools across Dubai during this academic year, paved the way for some schools to raise tuition prices.
In Dubai, school fee increases are tied to the annual Education Cost Index (ECI) announced by Dubai Statistics Centre.
Under the system, when the next school year kicks off in September, schools rated as ‘outstanding’ can raise fees by up to 4.8 per cent for that year.
‘Very good’ can increase fees by up to 4.2 per cent and ‘good’ by 3.6 per cent.
Schools rated as ‘acceptable’, ‘weak’, and ‘very weak’ are allowed a maximum 2.4 per cent increase.