UAE higher education institutions witness past decade’s highest intake in 2024-2025 academic year with 57,035 students

Taif Alamiri:

• The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research is refining the admission system to balance growing enrolment with academic quality
• The 2024 regulatory update has given universities more flexibility to design educational programmes and set admission criteria based on students’ abilities, not just test scores

United Arab Emirates: The Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MoHESR) has announced that the 66 higher education institutions (HEIs) in the UAE that are reporting enrolment data admitted 57,035 new students from the UAE and abroad for the 2024-2025 academic year. This marks a 13% increase on the previous year and the highest number of enrolled students in the past decade.

MoHESR data shows that female students accounted for 54% of the new enrolments at 30,756, which shows a 10% increase compared to 2023-2024 and reflects the gender balance in higher education opportunities in the country. Meanwhile, the number of male students reached 26,281, 18% higher than the previous academic year.

The Ministry attributed the increase to a more efficient and flexible admission system, supported by streamlined procedures, zero government bureaucracy processes, and improved digital services, including the Unified Registration System (URS). This has strengthened coordination between MoHESR and HEIs and simplified student enrolment. The rise also reflects the 2024 update to admission criteria and ongoing modernisation efforts aimed at aligning academic programmes with student aspirations – an important step toward expanding enrolment in the coming years.

Her Excellency Taif Mohamed Alamiri, Acting Assistant Undersecretary for the Higher Education and Scientific Research Regulation and Governance Sector at MoHESR, said: “MoHESR is refining the admission system to balance growing enrolment with academic quality, relying on unified digital platforms and continuous feedback to provide efficient, transparent admission processes. Last year’s regulatory update has given HEIs more flexibility to design educational programmes and set admission criteria based on students’ abilities, not just test scores. This opens new pathways for studying specialised fields that support the national economy and future job market needs.”

MoHESR reaffirmed its commitment to the ‘We the UAE 2031’ vision by developing a modern, agile education system that equips youth with the skills to build a competitive, sustainable knowledge-based economy.

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