Horizon Private School branch is a US curriculum school catering mainly to Emirati and native-Arabic speakers, located in one of the newer housing areas off-island.

The story so far...

Horizon Private School (branch) - HPS-Br. - was founded in 2008 and offers a preKG to Grade 12 US curriculum, to some 1,700 students.  The school is located in Khalifa City A, on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, close to the newer residential areas and to Abu Dhabi airport.  The original school is a Ministry of Education curriculum school, solely for local families.

The school's very recently redesigned website offers a range of reasons for parents to choose HPS-Br., based on Academics (see What about the curriculum?), Culture and Heritage, Above and Beyond, and Care and Trust. 

The school informed WhichSchoolAdvisor.com that its USP is its ability to offer"an affordable world class education, reinforcing the national identity of the Emirati students within an international environment".

Further, the school states that it is:

• Respectful of the UAE vision, history, culture, and traditions
• Reinforcing the national identity of the Emirati students
• Paving the path to the best universities both locally and worldwide
• Offering a wide range of extra-curricular activities and experiential learning programs

The majority of students attending the school, according to the most recent 2021-22 ADEK inspection report are Emirati (some 65%), followed by students from Jordan, Egypt and the USA.  Overall, there are some 47 nationalities who attend the school, offering real multi-national mix.  Unusually for a school with a significant Emirati population, the school markets itself as co-educational.  It is not clear whether this applies to all grades or only to the KG and Elementary section, which is the norm in the emirate. 

Students are supported by around 105 teachers and a further 5+ teaching assistants.  The leadership of the school is made up of educators almost entirely from Lebanon, and teachers are a mix of nationalities from North America, the Middle East,  Ireland. All are said to be qualified, professional and experienced educators with a minimum of a Bachelor Degree and Teaching Diploma. 

The school website states that "teachers are ambitious and seek to maximize the potential of every single child in their care, aiming to create an enduring desire for learning, whilst encouraging young people to extend themselves beyond their everyday interests and perceived capabilities". 

Average class sizes vary between 20 to 30 students.  With an average teacher:student ratio of 1:15, this is a level that should permit good individual support for students.  This is an inclusive school.  Approximately 4% of pupils are identified with a wide range of SEND requirements.

What about the curriculum?

HPS-Br. offers a twelve-year American curriculum based on the Virginian Common Core State Standards. This curriculum allows the students to discover their strengths and weaknesses and plan for the future. It gives them the opportunity to understand how they best learn and to choose their paths carefully. The medium of instruction is English in all grade levels.  From KG1 to Grade 12 the school focuses on English, Arabic and French.  French is embedded in the curriculum as a third language.  The school has a particular focus on Science subjects.

HPs-Br is accredited by US Schools and Colleges accreditation organisation Cognia, and by the US College Board for SAT and AP courses and examinations, thus ensuring that students' qualifications will be recognised by colleges and universities in the US and internationally.

The core curriculum helps in strengthening the foundation, while electives and AP courses are offered to help students enhance and expand their knowledge. As part of the curriculum, students are prepared to sit for the SAT and IELTS/TOEFL examinations. It is also mandatory for all students in Grade 10 to take the PSAT exam.

For students in High School, some 13 Advanced Placement (AP) courses are offered for College entry.  AP classes are optional for students based on their academic ability. Students are required to meet minimum standards before it is determined whether they are able to take the course or not. Horizon Private School (Branch) is a test centre for AP examinations (for HPS-Br students only). 

The school's Guidance Counsellor guides the students in choosing their courses based on their college and career goals, interests, and academic performance. The Guidance Counsellor also assists students in their application process and ensures that they meet entrance requirements by arranging campus college representative visits, and university fairs, as well as providing the administrative support required (such as transcripts, registration for Standardized tests, assisting students with preparing their personal statement/college entrance essays, and organising recommendations from teachers, counsellors or the Principal). 

HPS-Br organises a number of overseas visits for students - these have included trips to France, Monaco, Italy, Singapore, Indonesia and the United States of America.

According to the school, "HPS-Br. has dedicated a weekly period during the curriculum hours for clubs and activities. These clubs give the students opportunities to explore their passions and interact with peers who have similar interests while having fun".

Clubs are said to trigger creativity and foster each individual’s interests by including topics such as arts and crafts, science, acting, and much more.

To allow a range of different extra-curricular activities to take place, normal curriculum times are modified slightly on Wednesday afternoons to enable students take part in "interesting and exciting cultural, sporting and academic activities".  More interesting options include Sports Academy, Ballet and Dance Fusion.  

What about Academic Achievement?

Whilst the school does not share an annual High School Profile, the 2018-19 ADEK report noted that "Most students in Grade 12 perform at the highest level in their Advanced Placement tests and their SAT assessments".  Most students in Grade 12 achieve very good results in their SATs with 82% achieving above the 400 mark in writing and over 64% in critical reading. Graduates in 2016 performed better than US norms with 94% achieving 400 or above in Mathematics.  

What about facilities?

The school is located in a modern building with a good range of facilities.  These include a football field, an indoor swimming pool, an indoor basketball court, three kindergarten playgrounds, indoor kindergarten gyms, two music rooms, chemistry and physics laboratories, and a multipurpose hall.  

What the inspectors say

In the 2018-19 inspection round, HPS-Br. was rate Very Good overall, an improvement from the previous inspection when it was rated Good.  This is clearly an endorsement of progress throughout the key performance areas, and one of which HPS-Br. can be justifiably proud, bringing the school to one performance level below the Outstanding rating.

With the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic, all inspections were put on hold from April 2020 to September 2021. HPS-Br received its first post-Covid inspection in February 2022 and was again awarded a Very Good rating.  

For reasons that have not been explained (we assume to enable inspections to take place at all schools that had not been inspected in 2019 and 2020), the inspection team reviewed only four of the six key performance standards and issued abbreviated reports without commentary.

If you would like to read the inspection report - and we always recommend that you do so in order to understand where the strengths of the school lie, and which areas may require improvement - you will find it here.

The Buzz

WhichSchoolAdvisor.com has received a substantial number of responses from Parents to our School Survey.  Respondents have given the school a rating of 4.3/5 - an 86% positivity rate.

Children appear to enjoy going to school and have a quite a strong sense of belonging.  The majority of parents are satisfied with the academic performance of the school, and appreciate the strong communications and disciplinary policy.  80% of parents would recommend HPS-Br to others. 

Perhaps somewhat surprising is the one in three parents who have considered moving their child to another school.  This seems to be as a result of two factors - firstly the value for money that parents feel the school fees represent, and secondly a proportion of parents, who are not fully satisfied with various aspects. 

The issue of fees is often a contentious one, and this appears to be the case at Horizon Private School (Branch).  Whilst 39% agree that fees do represent value for money, and 15% (above the UAE average of 11%) disagree entirely, 46% partially agree with this statement.

 The percentage of parents who are clearly dissatisfied across a range of factors is small (around 5%); it is this undecided group whose views have impacted the overall level of satisfaction with the school, with 16% who were not sure whether they would recommend the school. 

If you are a parent, teacher or student at Horizon Private School Branch, please share your opinions and experience with other potential members of your community and complete our Survey.

What about the fees?

Tuition Fees are average to high based on ADEK's evaluation.  They range from AED 23,000 in pre-KG to AED 45,570 in Grade 12. Additional fees of AED 4,500 for transport, AED 1,500-AED 6,000 for books and AED 700-1,000 for uniforms apply. 

This school is in a Best School by parents ranking

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

• #25 in Best Schools in the UAE
• #2 in Best Schools in Abu Dhabi
• #1 in Best American Schools in Abu Dhabi

Are you looking for a place for your child, and want help from our school consultants? If so, click on the link below, and we will forward your request for information to the school or schools of the same type that we are confident have availability. This is a free service for our readers. Request Information