UK, Australian, Indian and US Universities in Dubai

UK universities in Dubai

British universities in Dubai form the largest group of branch campuses. They teach UK curricula, generally award UK-style honours degrees, and the degree is the home university's.

• Birmingham Dubai is a full campus with undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. Its application FAQs say graduates receive a University of Birmingham degree certificate that mentions only the UK, while the transcript says Dubai, and that fees are the same as at the UK campus.
• Heriot-Watt and Middlesex run undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Knowledge Park, where Bradford also has a campus. Middlesex publishes a 2026-27 undergraduate fee of AED 64,557 a year (Middlesex fee page, Oct 2026).
• Manchester, Strathclyde, London Business School and City focus mainly on part-time and executive postgraduate study for working professionals.

Australian universities in Dubai

Australian universities in Dubai (and the UAE) are concentrated in Academic City and Knowledge Park.

Curtin publishes total programme fees, for example AED 182,700 for most three-year bachelor's degrees (Curtin fee page, Oct 2026). It received CAA institutional accreditation on 9 January 2025 and lists 16 accredited undergraduate programmes plus postgraduate and PhD programmes. Murdoch was among the 16 Dubai institutions MoHESR licensed in February 2025. The University of Wollongong in Dubai began as an Australian initiative and is licensed in the UAE; check with the university which institution's name appears on the certificate for your programme.

Indian universities in Dubai

Indian universities in Dubai are popular with Indian expat families because they mirror Indian programmes and fee levels are often lower than UK or US branches.

Manipal's published annual fees for the September 2026 batch range from AED 43,575 (evening BBA) to AED 57,750 (day BTech) (Manipal fee page, Oct 2026). IIM Ahmedabad's Dubai campus, announced in July 2025, is the newest. The CAA list marks IMT Dubai's student admissions as suspended, so check its status before applying.

American and US universities in Dubai

There are fewer US branch campuses than UK ones, so many students looking for American universities in Dubai choose American-style UAE universities instead.

RIT Dubai in Dubai Silicon Oasis and Hult in Dubai Internet City are US branches. Georgetown University Dubai opened in DIFC. The American University in Dubai is a UAE university that is accredited by the US Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award bachelor's and master's degrees, licensed by MoHESR and permitted by KHDA. Other American-style universities include Canadian University Dubai, the American University in the Emirates and, outside Dubai, the American University of Sharjah and AURAK.

French, Italian and other foreign universities in Dubai

French universities in Dubai include strong business schools in DIFC and a fashion institute. Italian, German, Lebanese, Russian, Chinese and Saudi institutions are also present.

How branch campus degrees are awarded

At a genuine branch campus, the home university sets the curriculum and assessment and awards the degree. In practice:

• The certificate is normally issued by the home university. Some, like Birmingham, state the certificate does not mention Dubai; the transcript may.
• KHDA checks that the programme taught in Dubai matches the home campus through its quality assurance process (UQAIB), as Middlesex describes.
• Not every home-campus programme is offered in Dubai, and a Dubai campus may only offer some intakes or study modes.
• Professional accreditations (for example engineering or accounting bodies) can differ by campus. Ask whether the accreditation applies to the Dubai delivery.

Recognition and equivalency of foreign university degrees in the UAE

This is where the rules have changed most. Until 2025, most Dubai branch campuses held only a KHDA permit, which gives Dubai-level recognition. Graduates needing federal recognition, for example for UAE federal jobs, faced an extra equivalency step at the Ministry.

In February 2025 MoHESR licensed 16 former KHDA-only institutions, including Curtin, Murdoch, Middlesex, Bradford, BITS Pilani, De Montfort, Hult, Luiss, Manipal, SAE, the University of Europe for Applied Sciences, SKEMA, Georgetown, Paris School of Business, ESMOD and the University of Manchester. MoHESR said this lets students obtain ministry approval of certificates, transcripts and other documents. The PIE News reported that licensing now takes weeks rather than months under a MoHESR and KHDA agreement. Many more Dubai branch campuses now appear as active on the CAA list.

Middlesex, for example, says its programmes are accredited by MoHESR and graduates can have degree certificates attested by MoHESR, which it links to UAE federal jobs, further study and some scholarships. Curtin's site states its qualifications are also certified by KHDA.

Universities in Dubai for international students: how to choose

For the full list of every Dubai university, including local ones, see universities in Dubai.