New schools offer thousands of new places for Dubai pupils

Four new schools and a fifth one that is expanding in Dubai will provide thousands of new places for pupils in the upcoming academic year.

DUBAI // Thousands of places will be available for pupils in the new academic year as four schools open and an existing school increases its capacity.

The authority that regulates Dubai's schools yesterday announced that the five institutions can admit nearly 5,500 pupils in the 2012-13 academic year.

A new school near the Green Community can admit nearly 2,000 pupils from kindergarten to Grade 12 when it opens its doors in September, while another in Al Ghusais can admit up to 200 high school students, according to the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA). The authority disclosed neither the names of the schools nor their curricula.

Two new Indian schools - Ambassador Kindergarten and The Indian Academy - have been operations since April, when the Indian academic year began. The schools, which can enrol a total of 2,700 pupils, help address serious place shortages at the Indian schools.

With an estimated population of over 1.75 million in the UAE, Indians make up one of the country's largest expatriate communities. Several Indian schools in Dubai use the lottery system of admitting students because each year thousands apply for too few seats. Under this system, schools use lots to randomly select students competing for the available places.

An unnamed British-curriculum school in Jumeirah will increase its capacity by adding 500 seats.

The opening of the new schools will add to the 24 schools and 39,000 student places that have been created since the KHDA was established in 2007. More than 207,000 students are enrolled in Dubai's private schools. The education authority said encouraging investment in private education was a priority, and it has formulated an academic plan guide for potential operators.