KHDA Ratings 2026 – Schools in Dubai (Outstanding)

Schools receive an “Outstanding” rating given the quality of performance substantially exceeds expectations. Schools rated ‘Outstanding’ have an exceptionally high quality of performance or practice.

The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) publishes school inspection reports and a comprehensive review of the performance and standards of private schools in Dubai. For more details, see the full guidelines here.

What are school inspection results?

The school inspection reports are published by the KHDA which aims to provide a comprehensive review of the quality of education in Dubai. It evaluates the performance and standards of private schools in the emirate

Each report includes a section called “Parent Report”, which contains detailed information about the quality of education in each school. This section aims to help parents make informed decisions when choosing a school for their child. The report also entails each school’s provision for special educational needs (SEN, and early years education).

Parents are the ultimate partners of schools in their child’s education. Thus, they are encouraged to work in cooperation with the school to improve their performance. After each report is published, parents and school leaders will meet to share action plans for the school.

How does KHDA rate and inspect schools in Dubai?

KHDA works with DSIB in producing comprehensive Inspection reports on the key areas of every school. The report will measure the following aspects:

• Students’ achievements
• Effectiveness of the school
• Environment for learning
• Processes for self-evaluation
• Capacity for improvement
• Students’ progress in Islamic Education (for Muslim students)
• Students’ progress in Arabic, English, mathematics and science

KHDA uses the rating levels below to determine how well each school performed according to the above key areas:

• Outstanding – exceptionally high quality of performance or practice.
• Very Good – the quality of performance exceeds expectations.
• Good – the expected level of quality for every school in Dubai.
• Acceptable – the minimum level of acceptability required for Dubai. All key aspects of performance and practice in every school should meet or exceed this level.
• Unsatisfactory – quality not yet at the level acceptable for schools in Dubai. Schools will be expected to take urgent measures to improve the quality of any aspect of their performance or practice that is judged at this level.

Which are the Outstanding Schools in Dubai?

This year, a total of 23 schools are rated Outstanding. Compared to the last academic year, there were 17 outstanding schools.

Facts about the recent KHDA school inspection reports:

• There are a total of 209 schools inspected this year
• 11 schools were not inspected
• 10 schools were inspected for the first time
• 23 schools are rated Outstanding
• 48 schools are rated Very Good
• 85 schools are rated Good
• 51 have been rated Acceptable
• 2 are considered Weak
• 26 schools improved their rating
• 3 schools moved from ‘Very Good’ to ‘Outstanding’
• 11 schools moved from ‘Good’ to ‘Very good’
• 11 schools moved from ‘Acceptable’ to ‘Good’
• 1 schools moved from ‘Weak’ to ‘Acceptable’

Here’s a comparison of previous KHDA ratings compared to this year’s results:

Below is a list of all outstanding schools in Dubai. For additional details, see DSIB Report here.