Emirates National Schools (ENS) Dubai is the sixth branch of the ENS Group of schools. Although aimed predominantly at Emirati students, the schools also encourage students of other nationalities. The Dubai branch opened in September 2021.

The story so far...

Well known for its mainly US/IB curriculum schools in Abu Dhabi, the Emirates National Schools group opened sixth branch in Dubai for September 2021. 

The new school is located in Al Khawaneej and is aimed at predominantly – but not solely – Emirati students. It opened from KG1 to Grade 5 initially, growing to a full K-12 school with a capacity of three thousand students across the full range.

The Vision of the schools is defined as: "Preparing future leaders through innovation in education and treasuring of cultural heritage" whilst their Mission statement proclaims  that "Emirates National Schools aims to provide students with educational programmes that develop character, use technology to improve learning, and prepare students to be leaders and community members".

The ENS group's Chairman of the Board of Directors is His Excellency Ahmed Muhammad Al Humairi, Secretary General of the Ministry of Presidential Affairs. The Group was established by His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs. 

The Dubai branch of the school is led by Andreas Swoboda, previously Principal of Taaleem's Uptown International School, who left them after one year to join ENS Dubai. In his 20 year career, Mr. Swoboda has led schools in Singapore, India, Germany and latterly Spain, prior to his arrival in the UAE in 2020.

In 2020, ENS group schools educated more than 12,000 pupils and will have an expected alumni network of more than 3,000 graduates by the end of 2022. The group has five other campuses located throughout the UAE including a Primary and  Secondary campus in Abu Dhabi City, Mohammed Bin Zayed City, Al Ain, Ras Al Khaimah, and Sharjah. 

Dr. Kenneth Vedra, Director General of the Emirates National Schools, said that the branch in the Emirate of Dubai "will adopt best international practices in teaching and learning and will work to provide students with educational programs that develop their personality and enable them to take pride in their cultural heritage within a developed school building with the use of the latest technology technologies to support and develop the educational process".

What about the curriculum?

The new branch in Dubai has adopted the International Baccalaureate programmes, starting with the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) as a teaching curriculum and will seek accreditation from the International Baccalaureate Organisation in common with other branches of schools in the group. 

Emirates National Schools have also obtained American academic accreditation from the Cognia Foundation for the American High School Diploma programme. The group's schools are among those accredited by UNESCO.

What about the facilities?

Designed according to the latest international standards followed by the Emirates National Schools, the Dubai campus has state of the art classrooms, facilities, halls, outdoor playgrounds and libraries designed with modern architectural specifications that constitute an attractive learning environment that meets all students’ needs. The new facility is geared towards interactive learning with specialist classrooms for language, science, and robotics as well as an auditorium and a well stocked and equipped school library.

The school is equipped with a football dome, an indoor swimming pool, a gym that can host basketball, netball and other indoor sporting activities, allowing students the opportunity to exercise the body as well as the mind.

What about academic achievement?

The Abu Dhabi-based schools have been inspected by ADEK, the regulator, with the Mohammed bin Zayed City and Al Ain branches being rated Very Good, the Abu Dhabi Primary School being rated Good and the Secondary section, Acceptable.  There are currently no independent inspection reports for the Ras Al Khaimah and Sharjah branches.

The schools have won several international and local academic awards, including the Arab Reading Challenge, the Khalifa Award for Education, the Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Distinguished Academic Performance, and the Sharjah Award for Educational Excellence during the past years.

What about the fees?

Fee information has released for the Dubai branch and they range from AED 25,000 for KG1 to Dh55,000 for Grade 12. The is within the range of other ENS schools which range from AED 22,000 for KG1 to approx. AED 56,000 in Grade 12.

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