Pooja Manoj, 17, an Indian student at The Millennium School in Dubai, received scholarship offers from universities in the US and Canada but decided to stay in the UAE to pursue her studies.
It was an easy choice following a NYU Abu Dhabi scholarship, that covers almost 90 per cent of her expenses, based on merit and extracurricular pursuits.
“I attended an all-expenses-paid programme with NYU Abu Dhabi last year and found it to be very collaborative. From that point onwards, NYU Abu Dhabi was one of my top choices,” she says.
“But I was worried that I would not be able to attend without a significant scholarship because of the high fees. So I applied to a lot of universities in the US and Canada as well.”
The relatively limited financial aid and lack of opportunities for merit-based scholarships is pushing students from the UAE and the wider region to consider destinations other than North America.
Other reasons including visa uncertainty are also solidifying the trend of regional students seeking alternative destinations to pursue higher education.
Amid rising costs of living globally, we compare the prices of university education globally.
In Canada, the tuition fee at the University of Toronto and University of British Columbia, where Ms Manoj received admission offers, ranges from $60,000 to $70,000 a year. However, each establishment offered her only $10,000 a year financial aid.
Similarly, at Indiana University in the US, annual fees ranged from $50,000 to $70,000 but she was eligible for financial aid of $20,000 only.
“In the US, universities do not give merit scholarships,” says Ms Manoj, whose father works in the telecoms industry. "Instead, they have a financial aid system where students are asked to submit proof of their family income, assets, bank statements and tax returns in order to assess their financial need and determine eligibility.
At NYU Abu Dhabi, she plans to pursue an economics degree, which usually costs about $86,000 a year, including tuition, housing, food, insurance and travel expenses. However, a scholarship covers her entire tuition fees and she needs to pay only $6,000 for housing and $900 for food.
The fee for the four-year programme increases progressively each year and the scholarship package will be adjusted accordingly, so the net amount a student pays remains the same, she adds.
Alternatives to the US
A number of directives and executive orders from the Donald Trump administration with regards to international students have added to uncertainty, jeopardising plans of thousands of students seeking admission to US educational institutions.
In the two years to the end of 2024, the US hosted an all-time high of 1.1 million international students, according to a report in November from the Institute of International Education, a non-profit body. More than half a million international graduate students (502,291) pursued study in the US that year. About 90,000 were from the Arab world, while more than 300,000 were Indian.
“Earlier, everybody would consider the US to be top in the pecking order in terms of which is the best country to study and in terms of flexibility,” says Rema Menon, director of Counselling Point Training and Development, an academic counselling centre in Dubai.
“However, new rules are now being discussed in the US every day. Many students are being denied visas or their visa status has been revoked. When parents read such news and also about frequent campus violence, they feel safer sending their children to a university in the UAE.
"In Europe, the number of refugees and immigrants is increasing, the crime rate is rising, housing costs are going up and there aren’t enough jobs for all. All these safety and security issues are also affecting students and their parents' academic choices," she adds.
Similarly, in Australia and Canada, authorities have streamlined processes and capped the number of student admissions. In the UK, while they are accepting students and visas are not an issue, provided parents have the funds, there is a scarcity of jobs, Ms Menon explains.
In contrast, students in the UAE have the opportunity of receiving a 10-year multiple-entry golden visa if they have an outstanding academic record, she adds.
Where to save for child’s education
Pradeep Nair, 50, an Indian parent in the Emirates, has been saving for his son’s education for many years. His son recently completed his four-year degree in mechanical engineering at the Vellore Institute of Technology in India, where the tuition fees cost about 600,000 Indian rupees ($6,927) a year.
Mr Nair also paid 60,000 rupees per term for food and lodging. Overall, the costs amounted to 770,000 rupees a year.
“I saved my pension gained from working in the Indian Air Force in the public provident fund scheme. My plan to save for my children’s education was to leverage the power of compounding and invest in systematic investment plans, bonds and mutual funds in India,” says Mr Nair, who works in the software industry in the UAE.
“I worked with IT companies and joined Microsoft, where I saved money in employee stock ownership plans for my children’s education. I also got a pay rise when the company transferred me to Singapore, so I was able to save more.”
His son plans to join Politecnico de Milano for his post-graduate degree in aerospace engineering, which costs about €30,000 to €40,000 ($34,550 to $45,865) a year.
Mr Nair will pay for the college fees with his existing savings and salary. Although he had invested in property earlier to fund his children’s education, his salary has increased over the years and is now sufficient to pay for his son’s college fees.
Tips to save for college fees
The best thing parents can do is start planning as early as possible, even if it’s just a small amount each month. Over time, it adds up, suggests Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching.
Set up a separate account just for university savings so it doesn’t get mixed up with everyday spending. It's important to have this clarity on your progress for such a significant and important cost, she recommends.
Ms Menon agrees, saying parents must plan well ahead and not depend on a scholarship alone.
Only send your child for studies abroad if you have enough funds to sustain them for four years, she advises.
Ms Glynn says parents should to consider the full cost of education, not just the tuition as it is only a part of the equation. You also need to think about things like accommodation, flights, visas, insurance and day-to-day living expenses, especially if your child is planning to study abroad, she says.
“If there’s enough time [five years-plus to when they will start their third-level education], investing some of the savings in a low-cost option like a global exchange-traded fund can help it grow more than leaving it in a regular savings account,” she says.
“If you’re looking at universities overseas, try to plan for potential currency fluctuations. saving in that currency can sometimes help avoid surprises later.”
Start having open conversations about money with your child, especially if it’s their first experience managing their own finances. Helping them feel informed, confident and prepared doesn’t just benefit their financial future, it also makes life easier for parents, she says.
When they know how to budget well and manage their spending, there’s a lot less chance you’ll be getting those “can you send me more money?” calls before the next allowance is due, Ms Glynn adds.
Fees in US and Canada
Ms Menon says university fees in the US would cost at least $45,000 to $50,000 a year and could even be as high as $90,000.
“These are not just for Ivy Leagues. Boston University is not an Ivy League, but it costs that much,” she points out.
“Some universities grant international students merit-based scholarships or based on extracurricular activities. However, certain institutions categorically state that no scholarship is offered at entry for international students.
“But they have the opportunity of gaining a scholarship after they have proved themselves at university. For instance, some students get their housing fees waived because they were residential advisers.”
Similarly, some universities in Canada are “quite expensive”, for example, the University of Toronto, the University of Waterloo, or the University of British Columbia, Ms Menon informs.
However, Canada’s college system is much cheaper. For example, some colleges may charge a fee of 30,000 Canadian dollars ($21,800) a year, whereas university fees will average about 75,000 dollars annually.
Fees in the UK
In the UK, international undergraduate tuition fees vary from £11,400 to £38,000 ($14,720 to $50,855). Typically, undergraduate degree courses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland last for three years or four in Scotland, Ms Menon says.
International postgraduate tuition fees vary from £9,000 to £30,000. Many postgraduate degree courses in the UK can be completed in one year of full-time study, she says.
Australia is “far less expensive”, while Malaysia has adopted the same technique as Dubai, in that they have many foreign universities establishing branches there.
UAE universities
In terms of Australian universities, the UAE hosts Curtin University Dubai, Murdoch University Dubai and University of Wollongong in Dubai; for Canada, there is Canadian University of Dubai; and Scotland’s Heriot-Watt University in Dubai.
“Students can do two years here and then go to the main campus for their final semester. This arrangement works out to be financially more viable,” Ms Menon explains.
“For instance, Michigan’s Walsh College has a campus in Ajman, where the fee is only Dh33,000 a year, with the opportunity to move to the US afterwards. Similarly, in Ras Al Khaimah, they have Northwood University and American University of Ras Al Khaimah.”
Across the board, all these universities offer scholarships for academic merit and because there is competition, they make it very conducive for parents by offering discounts on fees, she adds.
