Australian Curriculum in Dubai: AIS Dubai Admissions, Fees and Senior Pathways

If your child is halfway through primary school in Australia, the main question may be whether they can pick up where they left off. For a teenager approaching Year 10, there is a second decision. Where will they complete Years 11 and 12, and who will issue their senior certificate? The same school name can appear next to the Australian Curriculum, the Queensland Certificate of Education and an advertised Year 12 fee. Each of those details needs to be read in context.

Australian International School Dubai, or AIS Dubai, is the Australian curriculum campus listed by Dubai’s Knowledge and Human Development Authority. KHDA currently lists it through Grade 10. The Dubai school’s own secondary page describes a Queensland Certificate of Education pathway for Years 11 and 12. If either of those years is part of your plan, ask the school for a written offer or pathway confirmation naming the Dubai campus, the intake and the qualification. KHDA school directory · AIS Dubai secondary years

What families can verify at AIS Dubai

The campus’s 2023–24 KHDA report describes the curriculum as based on the Australian National Curriculum, with Queensland teaching approaches and UAE Ministry of Education requirements. It judged the school Good overall. The report also found more variability in early-phase teaching than in primary and secondary. If you are looking at Prep, ask how the teacher establishes a child’s starting point and what families receive about progress in the first term. AIS Dubai school website · KHDA 2023–24 inspection report · AIS Dubai fee schedule

Starting in Prep or transferring during primary

AIS Dubai uses Prep for the year it also labels KG2. The school describes Prep as the point when children begin its Australian Curriculum, with primary continuing through Year 6. In its junior-primary description, it puts an emphasis on oral language in Prep and early reading and writing in Year 1. A parent moving with a child who has already started school can bring the latest teacher report and ask which reading and maths work the new class would start with. Give the school the child’s date of birth, previous year label and months already spent in that year. AIS Dubai primary years · AIS Dubai junior primary

The calendar can change the placement conversation. AIS Dubai publishes a 2026–27 calendar with a December winter break. A child finishing a school year in Australia in December and arriving in Dubai in January may be joining a Dubai class partway through its school year. Ask the admissions team which grade it would offer and whether it would want the final Australian report, a promotion decision or additional work samples. If the child needs time to adjust to a different sequence in maths or literacy, ask who will identify that and how the teacher will let you know. AIS Dubai school calendar · AIS Dubai admissions

First-time enrolment and a transfer from an existing school are handled differently in the UAE Ministry of Education’s admissions guidance. For schools starting in August or September, the ministry moved the age cut-off for new kindergarten and Grade 1 admissions to 31 December from 2026–27. It says placement for transfers takes account of the last successfully completed grade and academic progression. If you have siblings in both situations, give admissions each child’s details separately. A birth-date answer for a child entering school for the first time may be different from the placement answer for a sibling coming from another system. UAE Ministry of Education admissions guidance

The Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority sets out eight Foundation-to-Year-10 learning areas, covering English, maths, science, humanities and social sciences, arts, technologies, languages, and health and physical education. Two schools following that framework can still teach topics in a different order. A recent maths overview, list of books or writing sample gives the receiving teacher something specific to work with. AIS Dubai’s KHDA report also describes local curriculum requirements, so ask what the school would expect from a child starting Arabic or another locally required subject after the move. Australian Curriculum learning areas · KHDA inspection report

AIS Dubai’s Instagram shared a post about its Years 5 and 6 aquathon participants. If a child wants to continue school sport after moving, ask which events are open to their age group and how to join.

Joining Years 7–10

AIS Dubai says that students in Years 7–10 continue across the Australian Curriculum learning areas, with English, mathematics, science and humanities taught by a consistent core team in junior secondary. Its admissions page describes a primary and secondary interview of around 30–45 minutes and says the secondary interview includes elective selection. Ask for the electives that run in the specific year you are entering. If a child is partway through a design project or has already completed one term of an elective, bring a short description so the school can see what they have covered. AIS Dubai secondary years · AIS Dubai admissions process

For transfers from Australia into Year 2 and above, the Dubai admissions page calls for a transfer certificate signed by the principal and stamped by the sending school. It describes different attestation requirements for some other origins. Get the exact document list while you can still reach your current school office. For a teenager, add the current subjects and any grades already finalised. If you are moving midyear, tell the school which courses are still in progress and when you expect the student to start. AIS Dubai transfer instructions

For a Year 9 or 10 applicant, use the interview to look ahead as well. A student considering engineering could ask which maths and science choices are available now and what the intended senior route would require later. Someone who wants to keep an arts subject might ask how long it remains available and which other choices would fit alongside it. The school’s Instagram shared a reel from a secondary event where pupils met university representatives. If your child is still working out what comes after school, ask when they can discuss future courses with a counsellor. AIS Dubai on Instagram

Years 11–12, the QCE and ATAR

AIS Dubai’s secondary page describes a senior pathway leading to the Queensland Certificate of Education, or QCE, with an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank available for eligible students. Its public fee page also lists AED 90,000 for each of Grades 11 and 12. KHDA’s school directory lists the Dubai campus through Grade 10. A fee line gives a price reference. For a child who needs Year 11 or 12, ask for confirmation that the grade is taking pupils on the date you need, which senior subjects will run and which institution will register the student for assessment and certification. AIS Dubai secondary years · AIS Dubai fee schedule · KHDA school directory

Pay particular attention to the campus name. The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority, or QCAA, names Australian International School Sharjah in the offshore schools section of its 2025–26 annual report. Sharjah’s school website also describes its QCE pathway. If you see a result, certificate or university pathway described under the AIS name, check which campus issued or published it before using it to make a decision about Dubai. The annual report records the period it covers. Ask the Dubai campus to identify the current awarding arrangements for your intake in writing. QCAA 2025–26 annual report · AIS Sharjah programme

The QCE is Queensland’s senior school qualification. QCAA describes a 20-credit requirement, including a set pattern of completed core learning, literacy and numeracy requirements, and an academic integrity requirement for graduates from 2026. ATAR is a separate ranking for tertiary admissions. Queensland’s admissions centre, QTAC, describes the subject patterns and satisfactory English result needed for an ATAR. A student who is offered an applied or vocational subject should ask how that choice contributes to their QCE and whether the full combination would also make them eligible for an ATAR. QCAA QCE requirements · QTAC on ATAR

If the student has already started senior schooling, send the name of the certificate they are working towards, the subjects and units they have completed, and any projects or assessments still open. The QCAA publishes different processes for moves within Queensland, from another state and from overseas. Its guidance distinguishes credits towards the QCE from results in a particular Queensland subject. Ask the receiving school which parts of the prior study can be considered, whether a formal application is needed and what has to be completed before graduation. This is also useful for a family planning to return to Queensland during the final two years. QCAA transfer guidance · QCAA assessment guidance for transfers

A family looking at university in Australia can use one possible degree to test the proposed subject plan. Look up the course at the institution you are considering and bring its named prerequisites to the school. For example, if the course specifies a particular mathematics subject, find out whether the Dubai timetable would offer that subject at the required level and whether it fits with the other courses the student needs. Ask which of those choices would remain if a subject group could not run. A broad statement about university entry gives less certainty than an actual list of subjects and units. QTAC subject selection guidance

Check the assessment calendar alongside that plan. A student whose family may return to Australia in the final year should know which results would already be recorded by the move date, which assessments would still be outstanding and who would send them. Ask the receiving school to check that information before committing to the new timetable.

What to budget for at AIS Dubai

The school lists AED 52,000 for Pre-KG, KG1 and Prep, AED 56,000 for Grades 1–2, AED 60,000 for Grade 3, and AED 63,000 for Grades 4–5. The move from Grade 6 to Grade 7 takes listed tuition from AED 71,000 to AED 81,000. Grades 9–10 are AED 85,000. For a family choosing between two homes, use the grade your child will enter and the grade they will move into the following year when estimating how much room there is in the budget. The current figures are a reference for both stages. The next academic year’s quote should come from the school. AIS Dubai tuition and discounts

AIS Dubai lists an AED 500 application fee and a 10% enrolment deposit credited against Term 1. It also lists AED 300 a year for health services, AED 450 for excursions and a resource fee starting at AED 400. On the published Grade 7 tuition of AED 81,000, tuition plus those three listed charges starts at AED 82,150 before application fees, transport and any other applicable costs. Ask for an itemised invoice and confirm the resources amount for the grade. If you need a bus, give the school your intended address and check both the price and the pickup time. AIS Dubai tuition and extra charges

The school’s 2026–27 page lists a 5% new enrolment discount and a 5% early payment discount. It says the new enrolment and sibling discounts cannot be used together. If more than one discount might apply, ask the school to show the exact tuition due and the payment dates. A deposit changes when tuition is paid. An application charge or an annual resource fee changes the amount to budget. Keep both effects visible if you are comparing the bill against an employer’s education allowance. AIS Dubai published discount terms

Frequently asked questions

Does AIS Dubai use the same year names as an Australian school?

The school uses Prep and lists it as KG2. It also uses Grade and Year in different parts of its website. Send your child’s date of birth, latest report and expected start date and ask for the grade on the offer. This is especially useful when transferring across calendars. AIS Dubai primary years · AIS Dubai admissions

Can my teenager finish the Queensland Certificate of Education in Dubai?

AIS Dubai describes a QCE pathway, while the public KHDA listing goes through Grade 10. Ask the Dubai campus for a current written answer naming the intake, subject choices, awarding arrangements and exam timetable. If you need a senior place now, make that the first enquiry before paying an application fee or planning the move. AIS Dubai secondary years · KHDA school directory

Does getting the QCE automatically give my child an ATAR?

ATAR has separate eligibility requirements, including a qualifying subject pattern and satisfactory English. Ask the school to check the student’s proposed subjects against both the certificate requirements and the admissions requirements of any likely university course. QCAA on the QCE · QTAC on ATAR eligibility