Fall 2024 Requirements

Spring 2025 Requirements

Admissions policies are clearly articulated so that they can be understood by applicants and implemented consistently by decision makers. Applicant information used for admission decisions are gathered systematically and used consistently. Admission policies provide all requirements considered in entry decisions and are accessible and communicated through our website and brochures throughout  the application process. Our admission policy aims for:

1. A student body that supports the achievement of the UD mission.

2. Providing clear and specific requirements based on accrediting body’s standards.

3. Providing established deadlines.

4. Explaining the process and responsibilities of the Admission Department.

1. Application Documentation Requirements

An applicant must provide the following documents for undergraduate admission within one semester unless approved by the President: 

1. Completed application form.

2. Original UAE high school certificate or a certified/attested equivalent (approved by the Ministry of Education). 

3. Official documentation of minimum English requirements per program valid at the time of admission. 

4. Copy of a valid passport and identity card.

5. Four recent good-quality passport-size photographs (in color) or in good quality  JPEG format file. 

6. If the applicant applies for micro-credentials within the undergraduate program and the micro-credential is:

   • Offered directly by UD the applicant must meet the admission requirement of the undergraduate program.

   • From a partnership university or entity, the student must meet the admission requirement of the partnership program and provide written consent to share their data, personal (passport, visa, etc.) and related academic documents (transcripts, grades, certificates etc.) with the external entity  in order to meet any necessary requirements to complete the program.
     
     

2. Admission Criteria

2.1  Applicants must:

1. English requirements:

   • If an applicant studied in a non MOE licensed high school there is no English proficiency requirement if the teaching medium is in English. High School scores are valid for up to 3 years from the date of graduation.

   • Achieve a minimum score of 80% in the final year of High School English for the Ministry of Education curriculum.  High School scores are valid for up to 3 years from the date of graduation. 

   • If the applicant’s educational system does not follow a straightforward structure or if English was not taken in the final year or High School Score is not valid the applicant must pass the university English Placement Test (EPT), or provide valid proof of English proficiency by achieving one of the following scores within the past 2 years from date of application:

1. IELTS Academic: 5.0

2. TOEFL (Paper-Based): 500

3. TOEFL (Internet-Based): 61

1. Meet the minimum additional academic requirements for the program of their choice if applicable 

   • Bachelor of Law LLB: As this is a joint  program  between UD and University of London (UoL), students are obliged to meet the admission requirements for both institutions.

     1.  Minimum high school score equal to or above 70% in mathematics or pass MPT.

   • Student-written consent form to share their personal data (e.g., passport, visa) and related academic documents (e.g., transcripts, grades, certificates).

     1. UoL applications submission takes place every year before the end of September.

        1. Fulfilling all the above UD admission requirements

        2. Attend one full year at UD, successfully completing 30CH with a minimum CGPA of 2.0

        3. Provide valid IELTS Academic: 6.0 

        4. Digital copy of UD official Transcript as a proof of successfully passing & completing the 30 CHs.

        5. A digital copy of a valid passport and identity card.

        6. Official name change certificate (if applicable). 

        7. A non-refundable application handling fees of 60£ 

        8. Every student is required to submit a University of London (UoL) application through the following link: (UoL- LLB Application) using the UoL AVC obtained from the Registration Department.

   • Bachelor of Science in Engineering, minimum High School Subject Grade Requirements:

     1. 80% in Mathematics or pass the MPT. 

     2. 80% in Physics.

     3. 80% in Chemistry or Biology.

2.2 Conditional admission: A student is considered a conditional student if they do not meet the regular admission    

                criteria.

• Low English Score: Applicants who do not meet the minimum required English score will have to take and pass UD English Placement Test.

  1. Based on the result the student obtains from the EPT, the student will be placed in an English course. Students have up to one long semester to complete this requirement after taking the remedial course.

  2. These students may be allowed to register in up to 12 credits (or equivalent) as per their study plan to contribute towards their undergraduate degree.

  3. Students not in a remedial English course have only two long semesters to meet the minimum English exam score requirements.

• Low Math Score: Applicants who do not meet the required Math score 

  1. Must take the UD Math Placement Test (MPT).

  2. Students who do not pass the MPT test will be required to take and pass the either Pre-Math or Pre-Calculus math course associated with their chosen major.

• Low Physics Score: Applicants who do not meet the required Physics score

  1. Must take and pass the pre-physics course.

  2. These students may be allowed to register in up to 12 credits (or equivalent) of appropriate General Education course work to contribute towards their undergraduate degree.

A hold will be placed on the student’s account, and they will be dismissed from the program unless they meet the admission conditions.

3.Transfer Students 

UD accepts students coming from other UAE-accredited universities if they satisfy UD regulations (See Policy S 6.3  Transfer Students). If admitted, some courses may be transferred as per policy S 6.3 Transfer Students.  Note: transfer credits from universities accredited by the UAE’s MOE are accepted only if the admission conditions are met. English scores should be valid for transfer students.

4.Advanced Standing 

UD allows academic credit exemption for up to 6 courses (18 CH) for Advanced Placement subjects in the undergraduate programs.  Eligible students can benefit significantly from reduced cost of undergraduate studies and also speed up their graduation .  For more details, refer to UD Policy S 6.4 on Advanced Standing. 

5. Admission Criteria and Requirements for Visiting/Audit

5.1 Visiting Students

1. A visiting student is a student enrolled at another institution who wishes to take courses at UD for transfer back to his/her home university. 

2. A visiting student must present an approval from his/her university regarding the transferability of UD credits to his/her program at his/her home university.

3. A visiting student must submit the relevant application form and register during the scheduled admission/registration periods.  The application for admission must include a copy of his/her passport and four recent photos (JPEG format file) and a copy of his/her latest University Transcript.

4. The visiting student must meet UD’s English language requirements (if the student’s current language of instruction at his original university is not in English). 

5. A visiting student must fully adhere to UD regulations and rules, including attendance. 

6. The cumulative number of credit hours allowed for the registration by the visiting student should not exceed 36 credit hours, and such student cannot register for more than 2 consecutive regular semesters or 4 non-consecutive semesters (Short semesters are not considered as long as the number of credits is not exceeded). Exchange students (i.e. from universities which UD has an MOU are subject to the terms of such agreements).

7. A visiting student may apply for a regular student status after complying with the UD admission requirements of the intended program. Courses studied at UD during the visiting period will be counted if they are associated with the selected program of study.

5.2 Audit Students

1. UD allows individuals interested to attend one or more courses as audit students. No limit is set.

2. The candidate must show some evidence of prerequisite knowledge required for auditing the course.  This can be done through a meeting with the course instructor/Program Director/Dean for clarifying this point and the purpose of auditing the course. 

3. Following a positive meeting, the course instructor, Program Director and Dean shall sign the related Application Form, which must be submitted to the Admission Department along with other required documents. The latter usually includes a passport copy and four recent photographs (JPEG format file), among others. 

4. The applicant must pay the regular course and other applicable fees for visiting/short course students before attending any classes.

5. Attendance is not mandatory, so the applicant will not be issued an attendance certificate.

6. Since homework assignments/examinations are not mandatory, the applicant won’t be issued a transcript. 

7. The course(s) taken as an audit cannot be counted toward a degree offered at UD.

5.3 Readmission/Reinstatement for Interrupted UD Students

1. A student who has withdrawn or has canceled his/her registration at UD, may be considered for readmission upon submitting a formal request to the Registration Department one month prior to the semester/term.

2. A student dismissed from UD on academic grounds may be re-admitted into a different program within a field distinct from their original program. However, if a student seeks to rejoin the same major following an academic dismissal, the case must undergo review and receive approval from the President on a case-by-case basis. In this situation, students must sign a declaration committing to earning a semester GPA of 3.0 or they will be dismissed without a chance of returning. 

3. A student dismissed from UD on disciplinary grounds will not be re-admitted into the university, even as a new student. 

4. Applications for undergraduate readmission may be considered if the period of study interruption does not exceed 5 years (10 regular semesters) from the last registered semester. In such a case, the same ID number will be used  and courses taken at UD will be considered. Courses taken outside UD must have a minimum grade of “C” will be transferred. (See the Transfer Admissions and Courses Policy S6.3 for full details)

   • In the case outlined above only UG courses that were taken at UD may be considered if it aligns with the current curriculum, and will be marked as Transferred as long as the previous grade was at least “C”. Other non-general courses may be considered subject to a challenge exam where the student must score at least 65%. Grades will be reported as “transfer” in the transcript. Graduate courses are not eligible for consideration.

5. Applicants for undergraduate readmission will need to meet the current program enrollment requirements.

6. Applications for re-admission after longer study interruption periods (i.e. >5 years) will be treated as new students (with new ID’s) provided that dismissal from previous study was not based on disciplinary grounds. Restrictions on study programs also apply. 

5.4  Admission for Interrupted non-UD students  

See Policy S6.3 on Transfer Admissions and Courses.

6. General Admission Regulations 

The following admission regulations are followed:

1. Applications for admission will be accepted until the announced deadline, which must normally be 2 weeks prior to the beginning of the semester. Applicants will be informed about the admission decision including their eligibility for transfer credits, or the date for any required placement tests, if applicable, within a week from application date.

2. Admission decisions of students into UD are normally valid for only one semester. Students who fail to register will lose their admission status and must resubmit their application as a new applicant.

3. If the student requests to postpone his admission for the following semester on reasonable grounds, the student will not have to repay the non-refundable registration fees.  

4. Applicants should make sure that they have all required documents submitted to finalize their admission  before course registration begins. 

5. The names of UD students on all university documents are spelled in English exactly as they appear on their passports or identity cards. If the name on a passport or an identity card does not appear in English, it will be spelled according to the applicant’s preference.

6. Applicants, who were denied admission to UD, may file a petition for admission on a conditional basis. These applicants will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis for approval by the VPAA. 

7. Students granted conditional admission will be considered At-Risk, and will accordingly be closely monitored by their assigned faculty advisor. 

8. Conditionally admitted students will have an enrollment hold(s) placed on their account. Once the conditions of admission are met, the hold will be removed, and the student will be recognized as fully admitted. The status is managed through CAMS.

9. Admissions standards for various undergraduate programs are normally assessed every 3 years as part of continuous improvement and enrollment planning, except when need arises.

Policy Overview- Undergraduate Admissions Policy

Definitions and abbreviations: