DPS Dubai, Delhi Private School, Dubai, is located at the Gardens, Jebel Ali Village, at the southern end of the city, one of the few Indian curriculum schools to have moved out of the more traditional areas of Bur Dubai and Deira. It is an established school, having opened its doors in 2003.

The Story So Far

Delhi Private School Dubai (DPS Dubai) is located in Jebel Ali Gardens, near to Ibn Battuta Mall.  The school opened in April 2003 and provides education for boys and girls from Kindergarten to Grade 12. 

The school states that its vision is to "be a happy school, where all students are facilitated to be the best version of themselves".  

DPS Dubai is a very large school, currently home to 3,835 students, 272 teachers, 22 teaching assistants and 5 learning assistants. Students are almost exclusively from India and typically each class has 30 students (the KHDA reports a staff to student ratio of 1:14, including two guidance counsellors). There are 194 Students of Determination, who receive specific support from the SEN team (rated Very Good by the KHDA).

Recent responses from parents to our School Survey have been extremely positive. Many parents have commented on the academic strengths, the support of teachers, the strong leadership and the opportunities for students to participate in a range of extra-curricular activities.

Examples include the following:

"Offers the best of Indian education in an international setup".
"The school is very supportive to not just the students needs but also the parents. The students are encouraged as per their capability and given opportunities to show case their talents. The school is fair in giving equal opportunities to all students. As a parent, I will vouch for the school any day. Though I am not a parent who frequents the school or have any contacts at the school, they have been very supportive to my children in all aspects. The feedback given by the teachers are spot on. It shows they know my kids as well as I do. They correct them when they are wrong and encourage them when needed. The kids have got opportunities for sports, MUN’s, art, dance, drama and many more platforms to showcase their talent. I am happy with the development of both my kids here."
"Opportunity to shine for every kid in whatever field he or she is having interest. Many extra curricular activities are there for kids to grow."

If there have been any criticisms, these have been mainly related to the cost involved in participating in some of the activities: "Here schools in Dubai all activities are charged and most of the children are very much interested but due to their financial situations cannot afford."

Students are also very positive about their school experience, with many again commenting on their teachers, academic strength and the opportunities for involvement in extra-curricular activities.

The following student comments are reflective of many: 
"Almost all the teachers are amazing and care a lot about each student. Virtually none of the teachers are partial towards specific students. Occasionally you do feel like academics is given too much importance and that grades matter more than learning or wellbeing."
"The strengths of the school are wide-ranging including excellent academics, sports, very good infrastructure, reasonable cost and extracurricular activities. Its weaknesses include that we may sometimes have a quite a bit of homework."

DPS Dubai is led by Principal and Director, Ms. Rashmi Nandkeolyar, an Indian National who has led the school for the past eighteen years, has ambitions for the school to be the “top Indian School in the UAE”. It is evident that Ms. Nandkeolyar is the driving force behind the school.

Commenting in the 2022-2023 DSIB inspection report, the inspection team noted “The principal is an outstanding leader who is highly knowledgeable and understands the school very well. With her strong vision, she ensures highly efficient daily management of the school, maintains a purposeful learning culture and sustains excellent standards of students’ academic attainment and personal development. She is a powerful leader who inspires an ethos of collective accountability.”

With the aim of being the top Indian school in the UAE, the leadership team not only benchmark themselves against other Indian schools, but against international schools too. 

However, according to Ms. Nandkeolyar, more important than results is the wellbeing of the children who attend DPS Dubai:
“Engaged and happy children are our greatest accomplishments.  We have so much belief in our happy school.  What we do comes from the heart.  We believe DPS is an excellent school where everyone can shine”. 

Ms. Nandkeolyar describes staff well-being as equally important too, with the management keen to retain and develop existing staff wherever possible. The current rate of teacher turnover (reported as 14% in the most recent KHDA report) suggests that this goal is being met and is well below average for international schools in Dubai.

Initiatives such as a Kerala Support Fund (to help teachers with families affected by the Kerala flood disaster) are in place, as well as simple social events and opportunities for professional development. 

Life-long learning is the mantra at DPS Dubai for staff as well as students. Ms. Rashmi Nandkeolyar periodically hosts CPD workshops to address teachers from all phases, enhance their skills and amp up their motivation and commitment to teaching through various sessions.

You can find out more about how teachers view their school in our  DPS EXPERIENCE visit. 

What about the curriculum? 

DPS Dubai follows an Indian-based curriculum with students completing CBSE examinations in Grades 10 and 12.  Students take a range of national and international examinations including the All India Senior Secondary Examination (AISSE) in Grade 12, the All India Secondary School Certificate (AISSC) in Grade 10, and the International Benchmark Tests (IBT) in Grades 3 to 9.  Students also participate in cyclical international assessments such as PISA, TIMSS and PIRLS.

Importantly, DPS Dubai is one of the few CBSE curriculum schools in Dubai to offer not only Science and Commerce streams, but also a Humanities stream offering Marketing, Commercial Art,  P.E, Yoga, Dance and Music.

In common with all CBSE schools, DPS Dubai promotes academic performance and is quite innovative in its use of ‘the carrot’ to encourage students. At the end of each academic year, the school gives a Scholar Badge to students of Grades IV-V, for achieving a minimum grade of A2 in all subjects and B1 in Arabic. To be eligible for the Scholar Badge in Grades VI-VIII, students must secure a minimum aggregate Grade A2 or above  in all subjects (except in Arabic - B1) and Stanine 6 in the International Benchmark Test (ASSET). 

For Grade IX,  Scholar Badges are awarded to students who secure a minimum aggregate of Grade A2 or above, with minimum grades as indicated against the list of subjects and at least Stanine 6 in the International Benchmark Test (ASSET). The requirement for Grade X students is a minimum aggregate of 85%, with minimum marks as indicated against the list of subjects. Those students securing 75% and above in all subjects are eligible for a Scholar Badge in Grade XI, whilst in Grade XII,  students must secure 80 % and above in all subjects.  

For all its academic focus, DPS Dubai clearly also encourages a holistic approach to education and students have access to a range of clubs and activities including Performing Arts, Model United Nations, Survivor Club, Music (Western and Indian), Quiz, Art, Environment, Math, Science, IT, English, MUN, Photography and Videography, Street Plays, Public Speaking, Business, Chess, Quiz, Gymnastics, and Aesthetics.

Students leave DPS Dubai for universities all over the world including India, the UK, the US, Germany and Canada include elite and prestigious Ivy League universities.

_{Students using Virtual Reality Headsets at Delhi Private School}

The school is also part of The Rahhal Initiative, a platform for non-traditional learning created by the KHDA.  Students enrolled in Rahhal are able to study part time, or at more than one school, using the balance of their time to develop skills in areas of their own interest. The programme enables  students to integrate at a regular school while pursuing their specific interests.  Children who do  not cope well with exams can also make use of this option.

A member of the WhichSchoolAdvisor.com team visited the school for the 70th Indian National Day celebrations. 
Find out more about the look and feel of Delhi Private School Dubai by reading our Experience report here.

What about Facilities?

The school offers an array of facilities and extracurricular activities. There are three computer labs, a physics lab, a chemistry lab, a Maths lab, language labs, four libraries, a Kinder learning centre, two auditoriums, a Yoga and Fitness lab and a Zen zone. 

More conventional sports facilities include a basketball court, a cricket ground, a multi-sports complex, and an oval field for many sports.

Further facilities include a cafeteria and two clinics, one for boys and one for girls. The clinics are operated by two nurses and a doctor. 

Whilst this school may not have the ‘gloss’ of some of Dubai’s premium fee schools, facilities are maintained to a good standard and the space available is well used. 

What the Inspectors Say

Delhi Private School Dubai has now been rated Very Good for a sixth year in a row.  It is one of ten schools to have achieved this rating from the KHDA, the Dubai education regulator's second highest award in the most recent (2022-23) inspection round. Following the initial rating in the 2015-16 inspection round, DPS participated in the Abundance project in 2016-17, whereby it was not inspected that academic year. The school retained its Very Good rating in the 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 inspection rounds.

However, this is the first full inspection, with a new report issued, since the KHDA announced, in late 2019, that schools that had achieved an Outstanding or Very Good rating, would no longer receive a full inspection and report.  

Summarising the strengths of DPS Dubai, the inspectors noted:

• The strong vision and powerful leadership of the principal and senior leaders, and the highly effective daily management of the school.
• The commitment of governors and leaders to provide attractive facilities and plentiful resources, wellqualified teachers and high-quality online learning resources.
• The caring ethos and commitment of members of staff towards achieving the highest possible standards in KG.
• Highly successful outcomes in international and national benchmark tests and students’ outstanding progress in English and mathematics in all phases, and science in Middle and Secondary.
• Students' personal development, their strong sense of social responsibility, deep understanding of Islamic values and commitment to a sustainable environment.

As is so often the case, the overall inspection rating really does not reflect the progress that has been made. 

Students' achievement is now rated Outstanding across all levels of the school for English and Maths, and for Science in both the Middle and High school sections.  Arabic as an additional language (a fundamental driver of the overall school rating) is now rated Acceptable across all sections.

Students' personal and social development and their innovation skills retained their Outstanding ratings across all sections and all performance measures. Curriculum design and implementation is also now rated Outstanding across the school.

Teaching and assessment is now rated Very Good across the school with the exception of the High school where it is rated Outstanding.  Management, staffing, facilities and resources were also awarded an improved Outstanding rating.

In terms of key recommendations for improvement, the inspectors identified the following actions:

• Ensure that the teaching of Arabic meets students’ needs and is appropriately modified to address those needs.
• Raise the quality of teaching and learning to the highest levels, by rigorously implementing improvement strategies and action plans with an increased focus on students’ learning.
• Improve teaching and learning by:
  o delivering lessons that have rigorously differentiated tasks, which challenge students of higher ability to work at their own levels and pace;
  o ensuring that all lessons meet the individual learning needs of students of determination.

If you would like to read the full KHDA inspection report - and we strongly recommend that you do so in order to understand the reasons behind the ratings - you will find it here.

The Buzz

The WhichSchoolAdvisor.com Parent Survey which has been completed by close to 90 parents, indicating a Parent satisfaction rating of 4.4/5 - a positivity rating of 88%.

The survey shows that the vast majority of parents (88%) are satisfied with the academic performance of DPS Dubai. Communications and the school's disciplinary policy and its implementation are similarly highly regarded, as are students' sense of belonging and enjoyment of the school. 

87% of parents would unreservedly recommend DPS Dubai to other parents, whilst only 5% would not. 

68% of parents fully agree that the school's fees represent value for money, whilst 27% partially agree.  Only a small minority of 5% disagree with this statement.

If you are a parent, teacher or senior student at DPS Dubai,  please share your opinions and experience with other other potential members of your community, and take part in our survey here.

Well over 1,023 parents responded to the KHDA's pre-inspection survey - an extraordinary turnout. 92% of respondents said that they were satisfied with the quality of education provided by Delhi Private School. They feel that school leaders value their views and suggestions.  They have no worries about their children's safety and well-being at school and have good access to information and support to help their children with their education. A majority of parents is regularly involved in activities to support the school and their children's learning.

1,930 students also participated in the KHDA's Wellbeing Census. The majority of students were found to have a strong sense of belonging at DPS Dubai and felt respected and valued. Students were happy and felt positive about their futures. Most felt that there was an important adult within the school to whom they can turn for advice and support.

Our View

What impresses us at WhichSchoolAdvisor.com is the fact that for a school that is already exceptionally popular with parents, DPS Dubai's team still pushes for, and achieves, significant improvement on an ongoing basis. Bearing in mind that the KHDA demands consistently higher standards year by year, the effort involved to achieve such improvements should not be under-estimated.  This requires investment both from a financial and staff perspective.  This is also where strong leadership is absolutely vital.

Our expectation is that Delhi Private School Dubai will continue to go from strength to strength, and as the school does so, so will its students. 

What about Fees?

Tuition fees for the school start at AED 10,289 at KG1 and increase to AED14,416 for Grade 12. Fees are paid in three installments.

For admissions into senior levels, note this is a selective school and a school that is in very high demand. You may find the requirements here .

Core school hours are 07.40 a.m. to 02.05 p.m. from Monday to Thursday and 07.40 a.m. to 12.00 p.m. on Friday for all students, slightly shorter than a typical day in many schools.  Optional extra early and late classes are offered.

This school is in a Best School by parents ranking

Delhi Private School Dubai is a Best of school, a ranking determined by parent surveys on the site. It can be found in the following Best of rankings:

• #20 in Best Schools in the UAE
• #2 in Best Indian Schools in Dubai
• #2 in Best CBSE Schools in Dubai
• #17 in Best Schools in Dubai

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