Top 20 Best International Schools in Abu Dhabi, UAE

Ajyal International School - Al Falah promotes academic excellence through high-quality education and instruction and through an enriched and rigorous combined inter-disciplinary US Curriculum and UAE Ministry of Education Curriculum.

This is delivered in a student-centered focused environment with the emphases on health and safety, strong moral and Islamic values, cultural tradition and national identity, respect and collaboration.

We further foster values of courtesy, consideration, good behavior and individual responsibility and offer a prominent level of challenge accompanied by equally important levels of support in English, Arabic, French and German language proficiency.

Virginia International Private school (VIPS) is noted for its American based and emphasises Science, Maths, Engineering, Arts and Technology (STEAM) across its curriculum. VIPS teachers are recruited from America, UK, Ireland, Canada with a mix of junior to senior level staff in terms of experience.

Average class size in terms of student numbers is also 22, with the maximum classroom size currently 24. We are offering a premium learning environment supported by the latest in assistive technologies and world class teachers. Our IT environment is positioned to support a very high level of academic program delivery.

Promethean boards are available in every classroom, used to make lessons more meaningful and to increase learning.

Brighton College Abu Dhabi (BCAD) offers its pupils a vibrant and challenging learning environment, and a distinctive British independent school ethos which reflects the values and dynamic culture of Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates. The College currently educates 1,800 children across the 3 to 18 age range in its Pre-Prep, Prep and Senior Schools. It is the sister school of Brighton College, the UK's top co-educational school, and a member of the Brighton College family of schools, which includes Brighton College Al Ain (2013), Brighton College Bangkok (2016) and Brighton College Dubai (2018).

Located on Abu Dhabi Island in a purpose-built campus next to Khalifa Park, Brighton College Abu Dhabi boasts state-of-the-art facilities and is committed to becoming the leading school in the Middle East. With over 140 inspirational academic staff and 100 support staff the school is able to provide an outstanding level of education as witnessed by our latest inspection reports.

Brighton College Abu Dhabi is the highest ranked 3-18 British Curriculum school in the city of Abu Dhabi.

Cranleigh Abu Dhabi opened its doors in September 2014 with similar aims of supporting the establishing Saadiyat Island community. From 2011 to 2014, teams from Abu Dhabi and Cranleigh UK worked closely to capture the essence of what Cranleigh is. The aim was to translate it into a community which combines the best of British education with a strong flavour of Abu Dhabi, Emirati culture and the cosmopolitan nature of the city.

Today the school is thriving. With more than 1300 pupils, a top rating from the Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK), and the title of Tes Independent School Awards 2019.

Cranleigh UK opened its doors in 1865 with the purpose of providing the local Surrey community with a first class, all-round education. The UK Prep School celebrated its centenary in 2013 and the Senior School celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2015.

Al Muna Academy Abu Dhabi, part of the Aldar Academies group, is a happy, successful English National Curriculum primary school in the heart of Abu Dhabi.  Feedback from children and families show that the community feel of our comparatively small school is hugely valued.

This is a school where positive professional relationships are valued and everybody works hard to ensure that children are happy, well cared for and make as much progress as possible in all areas of learning. Children are encouraged to be independent, resilient and enquiring learners. Aldar Academies have a proven track record of producing exceptional results at our secondary schools.

The teaching, support and education our students receive from the Early Years Foundation Stage help prepare them to enter into their secondary years and achieve success in their examination results.

Repton School Abu Dhabi (RSAD) opened in 2013 and offers a modern, dynamic education to our students. We are building upon a rich, deep, and successful history spanning over 450 years of educational heritage at Repton Derbyshire, UK and more than 10 years of international education at Repton Dubai, UAE.

Repton’s renowned high standards are matched by an aspirational culture, and we have been rated Outstanding by ADEK for our “Students’ Personal Development”. We keep our focus on each student’s individuality and potential, and promise “The Best for Every Child”. Our school is characterised by students who have an appetite for challenge, a genuine love of learning, and an instinct for working and playing hard. Our curriculum combines the rigour of the British system with the dynamism of the UAE and is supported by an exciting and broad extra-curricular programme taking full advantage of first-rate facilities.

Recognised by Apple for Educational Excellence, and nominated as Best School for an Outstanding Application of Technology, innovation and technology are fully integrated into all lessons across the curriculum. Teachers’ imaginative and purposeful use of technology and students’ exceptional levels of digital literacy, accelerate the learning in all subjects. We feed a natural curiosity for learning that empowers and equips children to collaborate and innovate, ready to successfully engage in our ever more digital world and pursue their dreams.

At The British International School Abu Dhabi, your child will grow as a confident, caring individual, whilst developing the skills and attitudes required to be successful in our constantly evolving international world. Since the British International School Abu Dhabi opened in 2009, we have made steady progress towards establishing ourselves as the school of choice for over 1800 students in Abu Dhabi.

Those that already know our school, will be aware that this success has been achieved through the persistence and hard work of all our teachers, students and parents. The attitude and environment of this school is one which always strives to achieve excellence and never settles for anything less. It is exactly this attitude that we aim to instil in all our students with everything that they do.

Whenever a student comes to The British International School Abu Dhabi, we make a commitment to provide them with the opportunities and support to achieve not only excellent academic progress, but also fundamental life skills such as effective listening, creativity and problem solving. We aim not only to have students going to the top 30 universities in the world, but also to develop a lifelong passion for learning and a genuine interest in the world. 

Liwa International School – Al Mushrif (LISM) offers a vibrant and holistic international education where the modern day needs of young people are understood and utilized to engage our students in learning, encourage intellectual risk taking and pursue a healthy, rounded lifestyle.

The vision of the Liwa family of schools is to provide an outstanding international education that inspires students to be self-disciplined, globally aware, independent lifelong learners, who are innovative leaders and critical thinkers. Liwa international school works through Partnerships & Awards with parents, teachers and the community, and educates students to high academic international standards by applying a learning centered approach, which prepares self-confident and socially responsible, young adults for our evolving and changing world.

Al Dhafra Private School is well-respected and established with approximately 1400 students, meeting the needs of the local Emirati and diverse international community. Al Dhafra is on a very exciting journey and has recently received a very positive Inspection Reports, from the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK) and also from our accreditation body, AdvancEd. At Al Dhafra we believe in developing the whole child, with a focus on academic excellence and personal development and wellbeing. We offer our students opportunities which provide them with a significant advantage when seeking places at university, and for the past few year 100% of our graduating students have been successful in being accepted by universities, both locally and internationally. The school empowers its teachers to fulfill their roles successfully as well as providing outstanding professional development. Al Dhafra enjoys the benefits of dynamic, experienced leadership, excellent modern facilities, a vibrant learning community, dedicated teachers and supportive governance.

Aspen Heights British School is a wonderful school in Abu Dhabi providing a personalised, high quality British education with a unique focus on the local community and environment. A member of the International Schools Partnership, Aspen Heights British School was founded in September 2017 and offers the National Curriculum of England for children from Nursery to Year 8 (age 3 to 13), with Year 9 opening September 2020, and growing one year per academic year. Aspen Heights British School is privileged to have a wealth of world-class, brand new facilities, and our spacious campus has been built keeping nature in mind.

Our environmental focus provides children with unique hands-on opportunities to appreciate and interact with their local environment. Aspen Heights British School is very much like a village school – our close relationships with our families and the community is what sets us apart from many other schools in Abu Dhabi, and our Amazing Learning results mean we’re fast becoming one of the best schools in Abu Dhabi.

Bright Riders Abu Dhabi is an Indian CBSE based Kindergarten 1 to Grade 12 (Science & Commerce) school located in Mohammed Bin Zayed City, Abu Dhabi. The school is built on international standards for education and safety and will educate children from 3-18 years.

In partnership with parents and the greater community, Bright Riders School intends to provide a quality education so that all students are able to reach their full potential within a caring, secure, and stimulating environment.

The Pearl Academy Abu Dhabi is proud to be the first Aldar Academies School. Being an Aldar Academies school ensures our staff and students have the unique benefit of sharing best practice across seven schools in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. Our Staff have the opportunity to attend high quality weekly professional development and pupils take part in many additional interschool events.

Everything we do is guided by our values: Excellence, Creativity, Passion, Respect and Collaboration. We deliver the Aldar Academies purpose of empowering the next generation to shape our future through our promise of delivering the highest standards of education and inspiring a love of learning. 

The Canadian International School (CIS) Abu Dhabi is a school that responds to the needs of 21st century expatriate students. We are living in an international community, so our school must provide a learning environment that cultivates the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to compete in an increasingly global society.

Right from the embracing arch at the entrance of CIS, students, parents, teachers and staff know that they are walking into a facility that has been purposely designed for a community of learners to meet the demands of our international world. At CIS, the Alberta Program of Study provides the internationally renowned standards and curriculum framework to support Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL), a student-centered educational philosophy that has proven to increase students’ abilities to problem-solve.

Students are presented a guiding question, and then must use their prior knowledge and skills to build direct and meaningful correlations to solve the problem.

The Elite Private school offers the core standard American curriculum, in accordance to ADEK requirements and to the needs of the UAE community.

Shining Star International School (SSIS) is a high performing International School in Abu Dhabi, fully accredited with CBSE- the largest examination conducting entity in the world.

Apart from the 20,000+ accredited schools in India, there are another 200+ fully accredited CBSE schools across 28 countries and we are fully equipped to handle international students on our campus. Our students receive a sound and holistic education across a wide range of subjects and extra-curricular activities, which helps them to develop and hone a broad range of skills.

Our curriculum is research oriented and designed to challenge students with varied abilities. Emphasis is placed on critical thinking and creative expression which helps our students excel both academically and socially. We ensure that our children evolve into responsible citizens with knowledgeable minds and benevolent hearts.

GEMS Winchester School Abu Dhabi is a modern, spacious and forward thinking international school in the heart of Abu Dhabi, which teaches the British curriculum to children from foundation stage to year 9. The school, located in Al Danah, Abu Dhabi, has been based on the highly successful Winchester School in Dubai.

By combining a highly personalised approach to education with traditional values and innovative ideas, we place special emphasis on the overall development of every student. We welcome students from around the world, working to develop strong and lasting relationships with parents to deliver the highest possible standard of education.

This commitment to both academic and personal excellence is the cornerstone of the GEMS Winchester School.

Al Nahda National School, located in Abu Dhabi, imparts quality education meeting international standards and accommodates over 6500 students. The academic courses are designed to expose all students to a wide range of creative, social, scientific and athletic experiences. Al Nahda School was established in the year 1983 and is internationally accredited by educational authorities (CIS, ECIS, NEASC, Edexcel, SAT, TOEFL, ASPNET, Cambridge International Examinations Syndicate) and at home enjoys national recognition with local and international educational institutions. The school curriculum lays emphasis on academic achievements and believes in fostering the intellectual, creative, physical, personal and social development of students in a multicultural learning environment.

Al Rabeeh School Abu Dhabi is a caring, family school with a strong sense of national identity. The schools has a very supportive parent family who are involved in all areas of school life. There is also a very strong Arabic and Islamic Studies Department staffed by well qualified Arab teachers.

The school has a high commitment to academic success and providing a well-rounded education. Its teachers are committed to challenging and inspiring each student to achieve their dreams and to become passionate learners. Teachers strive to make learning relevant and fun, while increasing children’s awareness of 21st Century learning skills in order to prepare them for a rapidly changing world.

At Al Rabeeh School we aspire to be a global community of thinkers, creators, innovators, and leaders who have a positive impact on the world of tomorrow.

Wales International School (WIS) is situated in Al Shamkha City, Abu Dhabi. It is a privately owned school, which opened its doors in August 2016.  It was set up to provide a high-quality British curriculum education for children in the local area.  Since opening WIS has gained British Schools Middle East (BSME) status.  Wales International School is still very much a ‘local’ school, catering for a predominantly Emirati clientele, which now caters for the 3 – 13 age group (girls and boys).

We adhere as closely as possible to the National Curriculum of England, within certain cultural and religious constraints, which will eventually culminate in IGCSE and AS & A2 level examinations.  All lessons are taught in English, apart from Arabic, Islamic Studies and UAE Social Studies, which comprise approximately 20% of lesson time, as prescribed by the Ministry of Education. Nearly all of our students are native Arabic speakers, but English is the official language of the school.

GEMS World Academy Abu Dhabi, is a International Baccalaureate (IB) World School. We have reimagined learning to equip students with everything they need to lead successful lives filled with purpose and enterprise.
Currently welcoming children from FS1 to Year 9, we pride ourselves on fostering a warm learning environment where all students feel safe, happy and fulfilled.
Our advanced curricular approach enables our students to graduate as future-focused thinkers and empowered global citizens, ready to make their mark on the world stage.
Our education philosophy champions the diversity of our student body, while our approach is guided by a respect for each child’s uniqueness. We provide opportunity and choice at every stage, offering a truly personalised learning experience.
As a fully authorised International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme school we engage each child’s natural curiosity and desire to learn.  Through our inquiry-based learning program, children develop deep understandings, skills and dispositions that build academic success and strength of character.