Students across the UAE are tapping into a wealth of higher education scholarships, with opportunities totalling nearly Dh1 billion.
The GEMS For Life programme, in collaboration with global universities and admission platforms, is driving access to scholarships across its network of 47 schools in the UAE and Qatar. To date, the initiative has unlocked Dh777 million in scholarships for students pursuing higher education worldwide.
Between August and December 2024 alone, students received 1,770 scholarship offers worth Dh426 million ($116 million) from institutions in the United States.
A key partner in this effort is Match by Concourse, which has reversed the admissions process by allowing universities to apply to students, rather than the other way around.
This innovative approach is expanding opportunities for students to secure funding and gain admission to top-tier institutions globally.
In an exclusive interview to Khaleej Times, Chris Goodbourn, director of GEMS For Life, said, “The vision of Gems for Life is actually a very simple one. It’s to make sure that GEMS as an educational organisation is giving lifelong value to our students. The thought is if you are a GEMS education student, you’ll always be one.”
“We do that through three kind of key focus areas. This includes ‘careers and employability’ framework that helps give students the opportunity to discover their passions and what they’re interested in and what their futures might look like,” he added.
“The second pillar is the ‘higher education’ pillar, where the education group partners with universities to bring really impactful opportunities for students. Those opportunities are from the scholarships and is also about engagement and masterclass opportunities and exposing students in schools to what higher education is really like, so they can make an informed decision about what’s best for them and what comes next for them in the future.”
“Finally, it is about ‘alumni’ and making sure that we’re supporting our alumni through their professional careers and well into their futures,” Goodbourn said.
The programme offers opportunities with institutions that actively engage with the GEMS system by conducting master classes, participating in school events, and providing scholarships.
Some of the university tie-ups include Leeds University in the UK, as well as the University of Birmingham, Heriot-Watt University, and Middlesex University in the UAE. Several prestigious Russell Group universities, like the University of Liverpool and the University of Sheffield are also part of this initiative.
Each institution provides exclusive opportunities for GEMS Education graduates, with offerings varying by university.
“Additionally, sometimes it’s a scholarship or bursary for all GEMS education graduates. Sometimes it’s a unique GEMS-only scholarship that is fully competitive. The students will then have to apply for it. They have to be vetted, and checked that they qualify for it based on their academics. At the moment, we’ve had about Dh350 million worth of pledged scholarships from these partners over the next few years,” added Goodbourn.
Notably, over 100 active GEMS For Life university partners worldwide have pledged scholarship opportunities. In the academic year 2023-24, one in five GEMS graduates directly benefited from scholarships. Three percent of all their graduates have enrolled in a global top 100 university, and 52 per cent of those are pursuing higher education in the UK, attending a Russell Group university.
“We have a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) partnership with universities where they commit to the scholarships over the next two or three years, and students can engage with those universities. The universities regularly visiting the schools and work with us to help the students to figure out what works for them. The second scholarship opportunity that we’ve put in place this year is through an organisation called Match, who offer a flipped or reverse admissions process.”
Goodbourn said the “reverse admissions” process, exemplified by platforms like Match, transforms the traditional university application system by allowing universities to proactively offer admissions and scholarships to students based on anonymised profiles.
Students create a single profile detailing their academic achievements, interests, and aspirations, which is then reviewed by multiple universities. These institutions assess the profiles and extend offers without requiring students to submit individual applications, thereby simplifying the process and reducing associated stress.
“Typically, the university application process is a student pitching themselves to a university by showing their grades and personal statements.”
“This year, we’ve had offers worth Dh426 million. These are realized offers that have been made to GEMS graduates to join universities in 2025. That’s from all over the world … from the US, Switzerland, Europe, UK, Canada.”
Students recalled their experiences of how it assisted them in their academic journey.
Year 13 student Natali Alkhatib from GEMS Founders School Dubai expressed her relief upon receiving university scholarship offers totalling over Dh1.8 million through this programme.
She said, “I received 12 university offers through Match, with 10 of them including scholarships ranging from approximately Dh3,670 to Dh91,750 per year. Some of the most notable ones are Illinois College – College Global Match Scholarship: Dh91,750 per year for four years; Ohio Northern University – Dean’s Distinction Scholarship (Arts and Sciences): Dh93,600 per year for four years; SUNY Binghamton – Dean’s Scholarship: Dh18,350 per year for four years; and Wartburg College – Wartburg International Scholarship: Dh67,850 per year for four years.”
“Receiving these scholarships has completely changed how I view higher education. Before Match, I was overwhelmed by the cost of tuition as an international student. The uncertainty of whether my family could afford it was a constant source of stress. The moment I received my first scholarship offer, that weight lifted off my shoulders. It was not just about financial relief. It was the reassurance that my hard work was being recognised. Knowing that my education is now within reach has given me the confidence to focus fully on my academic goals without the fear of financial barriers holding me back,” added Alkhatib.
Similarly, Ahmad El Jechi, former student at GEMS Wesgreen International School – Sharjah, now a student at American University of Sharjah, received a 45 per cent scholarship through this programme.
He said, “This scholarship is the reason I do what I do today. Knowing that AUS is one of the most prestigious universities in the UAE, I was always worried about how my dad would bear the heavy burden of the tuition fees, and my constant concern about this made focusing on studies difficult. This scholarship helped reduce much of this stress for my whole family.
“Before receiving my scholarship, I remember how stressed I was hearing about how many people have applied and how confident everyone was following their interviews. After receiving it, the sheer validation and support I got was profoundly uplifting,” added El Jechi.
© Khaleej Times
Twitter