The UAE school and universities calendar for the 2025-2026 academic year has been announced.
The calendar, which applies to all public and private schools and universities in the UAE, sets unified dates for the start of the academic year, the end of the three terms and end of term breaks.
The new structure was announced separately by the Ministry of Education, for schools, and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, for universities.
August 25 marks the start of the academic year, with the end of the school year pencilled in for July 3, 2026.
The winter break will be from December 8 to January 4, 2026. Spring break will be from March 16 to March 29. For private schools in Sharjah, the spring break will be from March 16 to March 22.
Mid-term breaks
The new calendar also specifies mid-term breaks for public and private schools.
These run from:
- October 13-19, 2025
- February 11-15, 2026
- May 25-31, 2026
Social cohesion
Sarah Al Amiri, Minister of Education, said the new calendar serves as a strategic national tool, reinforcing both educational quality and social cohesion.
She also noted that consistent holiday dates will enable community, cultural and tourism entities to align their programmes with the academic schedule, strengthening the link between education and society.
The ministry has allowed private schools that do not follow the government’s curriculum to schedule mid-term breaks in October and February, with each break not exceeding five consecutive days.
These breaks must remain within the specified months and cannot be extended or shifted, ensuring alignment with the national calendar while accommodating schools’ operational needs.
The ministry also stressed that all schools must follow the approved calendar, including holding final assessments or completing curriculum requirements in the last week of each term, to ensure pupils attend until the last school day.
This excludes pupils taking pre-scheduled international exams.
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Mobile phone packages comparison
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 247hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm from 1,500-3,500rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 7.8L/100km
Price: from Dh94,900
On sale: now
UAE SQUAD
Mohammed Naveed (captain), Mohamed Usman (vice captain), Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Imran Haider, Tahir Mughal, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed, Fahad Nawaz, Abdul Shakoor, Sultan Ahmed, CP Rizwan
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
The Year Earth Changed
Directed by:Tom Beard
Narrated by: Sir David Attenborough
Stars: 4
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Russia v Scotland, Thursday, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
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Coming soon
Torno Subito by Massimo Bottura
When the W Dubai – The Palm hotel opens at the end of this year, one of the highlights will be Massimo Bottura’s new restaurant, Torno Subito, which promises “to take guests on a journey back to 1960s Italy”. It is the three Michelinstarred chef’s first venture in Dubai and should be every bit as ambitious as you would expect from the man whose restaurant in Italy, Osteria Francescana, was crowned number one in this year’s list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.
Akira Back Dubai
Another exciting opening at the W Dubai – The Palm hotel is South Korean chef Akira Back’s new restaurant, which will continue to showcase some of the finest Asian food in the world. Back, whose Seoul restaurant, Dosa, won a Michelin star last year, describes his menu as, “an innovative Japanese cuisine prepared with a Korean accent”.
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
The highly experimental chef, whose dishes are as much about spectacle as taste, opens his first restaurant in Dubai next year. Housed at The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal will feature contemporary twists on recipes that date back to the 1300s, including goats’ milk cheesecake. Always remember with a Blumenthal dish: nothing is quite as it seems.
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• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
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