Free Scholarships in the UAE for Expats: Where to Apply in 2027

Last updated: November 2026

Free scholarships in the UAE for expats do exist, but they are rare. Khalifa University, UAE University and the American University of Sharjah fund some non-Emirati students, yet most undergraduate awards cover only part of tuition. Full funding mostly goes to top scorers and graduate researchers. Apply for admission first, because the scholarship request usually sits inside that application.

That one sentence saves a lot of wasted effort. Many applicants from Nigeria, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Kenya or Indonesia spend weeks hunting for a "UAE government scholarship" and only later discover that the national scheme, as far as the official pages I read show, is limited to Emirati citizens. The money for foreign and resident students comes from the universities themselves, and each one runs its own rules, its own form and its own calendar.

This guide pulls those rules into one place. Every figure below was read on the university's own page or on a government portal on 5 November 2026, and anything I could not confirm is marked as "check the university page" instead of being guessed. Treat the article as a map, then confirm the details with the university before you act.

The short answer, in six points

• Fully funded places for expats exist, but they are the exception. The clearest cases are the top tier at Khalifa University, the 100% awards at UAE University, the two flagship awards at the American University of Sharjah, and funded PhD places.
• Most offers are partial. Discounts of 10% to 75% are far more common than a full waiver, especially at private universities in Dubai.
• The national scholarship scheme is Emirati-only. The federal system run by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research is open to Emirati students and children of Emirati women.
• The order of steps matters. At some universities you tick a scholarship box inside the admission form. At others you must hold an admission offer before you can apply for the award.
• Where you finished high school changes which award you can reach. The American University of Sharjah has one flagship award for students who finished school inside the UAE and another for those who finished abroad.
• Deadlines are fixed. Several awards close on a single date per year, so the calendar is part of your strategy.

Which kind of expat are you?

Before you open a single university page, decide which of three situations you are in. The same university can treat them very differently.

1. You live in the UAE and finished (or will finish) high school here. You are a resident applicant. You usually hold a UAE residence permit through a parent, you studied a British, American, Indian, Pakistani or other curriculum in a UAE school, and you already know the country. At the American University of Sharjah this status points you to the Chancellor's Scholarship. At Khalifa University your private school must provide an equivalency certificate, so start that paperwork early.

2. You are applying from outside the UAE. You finished high school in your home country. At the American University of Sharjah this status points you to the President's Scholarship, which is the richest undergraduate package I found. Some graduate awards at Khalifa University also include visa and travel support for students who live outside the UAE.

3. You already have a bachelor's degree and want a master's or PhD. Here the picture is different and often better. Graduate funding at UAE universities is usually tied to research or teaching roles, and it is generally open to all nationalities. If you fit this group, read the graduate section below before the undergraduate one.

Be honest with yourself about which group you belong to, because the eligibility lines on the official pages are written around it.

The master table: UAE universities that fund non-Emirati students

This table collects the awards that are open to expat or international students, by level. Where I could not read a deadline or an amount on the official page, the cell says "check the university page". I deliberately left out universities whose websites I could not read, because a wrong number is worse than a gap.

One more row belongs here as a warning rather than an opportunity. At Zayed University, the university funds Emirati students, while non-citizens pay AED 2,500 per credit hour plus an AED 250 application fee and VAT. Financial help exists there only for students in need, so do not count on a free place.

Source: Khalifa University

What "fully funded" really means for an expat

Search results love the phrase "free scholarship", so it is worth slowing down on what the awards actually pay for.

At the American University of Sharjah, the President's Scholarship covers tuition, a monthly stipend, housing, three round-trip tickets and medical insurance. That is a genuine full package. The Chancellor's Scholarship for students who finished school in the UAE covers tuition, housing and insurance, but no stipend and no flights. Both are won by a very small group of applicants with top results and strong files.

At UAE University, a 100% award covers tuition only. The official page says it does not include housing and does not cover the application fee, and it asks the student to keep a GPA of at least 3.8 with at least 15 credit hours to continue. So "fully funded" there means "tuition is free", not "everything is free".

At Khalifa University, Tier I covers full tuition plus books. The seats are limited, and the page is clear that meeting the criteria does not guarantee an award.

Everywhere else, you are looking at discounts. A 50% merit award at a private Dubai university is real money, but you still pay the other half, plus housing and living costs. In practice the sensible plan for most expats is to combine a partial award with family savings, an assistantship later, or a lower-cost university.

An illustrative example, not a real student: a family in Dubai on a middle income has a son finishing a British-curriculum school with strong but not perfect grades. A 30% to 50% merit discount at a private university may make that degree affordable, while a 100% award would need a near-perfect profile. Planning for the partial award while still applying for the full one is the realistic route.

Undergraduate funding in detail

Khalifa University

Khalifa University is the clearest example of a scholarship decision built into admission. The official page says applicants are not required to submit a separate scholarship application. International students are considered for the five tiers when the admission file is reviewed.

To be eligible for the 2027 intake you need to have graduated from high school within the last two years (for this cycle, not before 2024), with mathematics and a science subject in your record. The page sets an 80% minimum for the American, SABIS, Indian and Pakistani curricula. Applications for fall 2027 are open until 1 February 2027.

If you attend a private school inside the UAE, the equivalency certificate is mandatory. People often leave this to the last month, and then discover it takes time. Start it while you are still preparing your applications.

UAE University

UAE University's undergraduate scholarship page says the awards cover international students enrolled from inside or outside the UAE, and they apply to students admitted from 2025 or 2026 onward. The Chancellor's awards for high achievers come in two main levels.

For the 100% award, the page lists a high-school average of at least 98%, IELTS 7.5 or TOEFL iBT 105, and SAT mathematics 730 or ACT 32 (some colleges are exempt from the test score). For the 75% award it lists 95% or above, IELTS 6.5 or TOEFL iBT 85 and SAT mathematics 660, with a continuing GPA of at least 3.6. There are also awards for talented students (100% and 50%) and for children of university employees, whose details I did not read in full.

The page states that scholarship applications must be submitted as part of the university admission application, within the announced admission periods. I could not find the undergraduate application dates for 2027 on the pages I read, so check the admission calendar directly.

American University of Sharjah

The American University of Sharjah is the one university where your high-school location decides your award. Read both lines carefully.

The President's Scholarship is for students who finished high school outside the UAE. It requires IELTS 7.0 or TOEFL 94, and a high result: 98% on the American system, 40 on the IB Diploma, or straight As at A-level. You need a file with an essay, a three-minute video and two recommendations. The page says you must have an admission offer first.

The Chancellor's Scholarship is for students who finished high school inside the UAE. It lists IELTS 7.0, and 98%, 38 IB points or A-level grades of AAB. It also needs an admission offer first.

For fall 2027, both awards close on 1 April 2027, and the application link opens from December 2026. Outside the flagship awards, the merit awards of 10% to 20% require an average of 95% or above in grades 10 and 11 and are considered automatically at admission. The need-based Financial Grant is applied for after admission and can cover up to 55% of tuition together with other awards. Its dates are 10 December 2026 for spring 2027, 29 April 2027 for summer, and 10 June 2027 for fall 2027.

Source: UAE University

NYU Abu Dhabi

NYU Abu Dhabi is a special case. The official page says every Emirati admitted student receives the Mohamed bin Zayed Scholarship without a separate application, so that line is closed to you if you are not Emirati. Financial support for everyone else is need-based, and the university says it accepts applications for financial support from all students regardless of citizenship.

You apply for aid through the CSS Profile, which is submitted before the notification dates, and you learn the offer when you learn the admission decision. The key-dates page lists early decision rounds on 1 November and 1 January and a regular application date of 5 January, with CSS Profile dates of 10 November, 10 January and 1 February. The page refers to the Class of 2030 and does not print the calendar year, so confirm which cycle you are reading.

Graduate funding: where expats have the best chance

If you are choosing between a bachelor's and a master's path, the funded graduate routes are often easier to reach for non-Emiratis, because they are tied to research ability and not to a national quota.

Khalifa University. For master's programmes, you indicate interest in a scholarship when you submit your admission application. Awards may include full or partial tuition, books, housing, medical insurance and visa and travel support for students who live outside the UAE. The conditions on the admission page are a CGPA of at least 3.0 out of 4.0, IELTS 6.5 or TOEFL iBT 91, two recommendations, a statement of purpose of 500 to 1,000 words and an interview. The master's for fall 2027 was not yet open when I read the page, so register your interest. For PhD programmes, the fall 2027 round is open until 1 February 2027, with a regular route needing a bachelor's GPA of 3.0 and a master's GPA of 3.25, and a direct route needing a bachelor's GPA of 3.5 and a quantitative GRE score of 150. PhD awards may include a stipend.

UAE University. The PhD scholarship open to all nationalities covers full tuition, a stipend and health insurance for four years. The page asks for a master's GPA of at least 3.5, no other employment or sponsorship, and a thesis in a priority sector: renewable energy, transport, health, water, technology or space. A monthly bonus of up to AED 3,000 or AED 2,000 is mentioned. The deadline follows the admission deadline, and fall 2027 had not been announced when I checked. For the spring 2027 master's intake, the window ran from 20 September to 3 November 2026 and has closed. The graduate school also lists research, teaching and administrative assistant roles for all nationalities. The Full Ride route from master's to PhD is for Emirati UAEU graduates only.

American University of Sharjah. The Graduate Assistantship can waive up to 9 credit hours per semester and/or pay a stipend of up to AED 20,000 per semester, for a maximum of two years and up to 20 working hours a week. You need a GPA of at least 3.25 and you request it when you apply for admission.

Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence. The funding details for this university could not be verified in this research, because the official site blocked automated access. I will not repeat numbers from second-hand sources. Read the amounts, eligibility and dates on its official scholarship page.

For a wider look at the top-tier awards, see our guide to fully funded UAE scholarships, and for a general eight-step plan, read how to get a fully funded scholarship.

Partial funding at private universities in Dubai and Abu Dhabi

Several private universities do not offer free places, but they do offer discounts large enough to change the maths of a degree.

At the American University in Dubai, the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Scholarship is open to all nationalities, needs an average of 90% or above, and gives a partial or full waiver for fall semesters only, based on need and merit. Several other awards at that university are restricted to specific nationalities or to Emirati students, so read the full scholarship page before assuming you qualify. The page advises students to apply for admission first, then for the scholarship.

Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi lists merit awards of up to 75% for new students depending on the high-school result, and the page shows different figures across tabs for different cohorts, so use the numbers as "up to" values. It also lists awards of 25% to 75% from the second semester for students with a grade of at least 12 out of 20.

Heriot-Watt University Dubai offers merit awards of 30%, 40% and 50% of first-year net fees, with entry examples of A-level BBB, ABB or AAB, IB totals of 28 to 32, 33 to 36 or 37 and above, or American averages of 85%, 90% or 95%. The page says applications are open, but does not give deadlines.

RIT Dubai grants academic awards of 5% to 45% based on the high-school percentage, a Dean's award of 30%, financial aid of up to 50%, and a 40% first-year award for ten international seats. You apply for them after you are accepted.

Source: American University in Dubai

What is Emirati-only, so you can stop searching for it

A big share of the search results about "UAE scholarships" describe awards you cannot use unless you are Emirati. Cross these off your list:

• The national scholarship and unified admission system of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, which the government portal says serves Emirati students and children of Emirati women.
• The Mohamed bin Zayed Scholarship at NYU Abu Dhabi and at Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi, which are for Emirati students.
• The ICT Fund awards at UAE University and at the American University in Dubai.
• The Full Ride route from master's to PhD at UAE University.
• Khalifa University's housing and weekly transport benefits for Emirati undergraduates.

A few other awards are tied to a single nationality or region, so a scholarship name that sounds general may not apply to you. When the eligibility line names a nationality that is not yours, move on and save your time for the universities above.

The right order of steps

Because the process differs between universities, many applicants lose awards by doing steps in the wrong order. This sequence works for nearly every case in the table.

1. Decide whether you are a resident applicant, an applicant from abroad, or a graduate. Everything else depends on this.
2. Shortlist universities that accept your curriculum and nationality. Check the minimum percentages for your certificate. For example, Khalifa University lists 80% for American, SABIS, Indian and Pakistani curricula.
3. Read the scholarship rule for each university. Is the request inside the admission form (Khalifa University, UAE University, NYU Abu Dhabi through the CSS Profile, graduate assistantships), or does an admission offer come first (American University of Sharjah flagship awards, American University in Dubai, RIT Dubai)?
4. Prepare language tests and equivalency papers early. IELTS or TOEFL scores run from 6.5 to 7.5 for the top awards. Equivalency certificates for UAE private schools take time.
5. Submit the admission application before the deadline, with the scholarship box completed where it exists. Calendars are fixed. For fall 2027, Khalifa University closes on 1 February 2027 and the American University of Sharjah awards on 1 April 2027.
6. If you receive an admission offer, apply for the award that needs one. Prepare the essay, video and recommendations in advance so you can move quickly.
7. Keep a fallback. Apply to at least one university with a partial award that fits your budget.

Papers, visas and the Golden Visa

Residents and newcomers have different paperwork. If you already hold a UAE residence permit, you may not need to arrange a separate student visa, but confirm this with the admissions office of your chosen university. If you come from abroad, check what the university offers: Khalifa University lists visa and travel support for some graduate awards, and the American University of Sharjah President's Scholarship includes three round-trip tickets.

The government portal also describes Golden Visa routes for outstanding students: five years for top high-school graduates and ten years for top university students, supported by excellence certificates and recommendations. That is not a scholarship, but it can matter to families deciding whether to stay in the country long term.

If your school is a private school inside the UAE and you plan to apply to Khalifa University, ask your school how to obtain the equivalency certificate. If you studied in another country and your certificate must be recognised elsewhere, our guide to certificate equivalency in Turkey shows how another country handles the same problem, which can help you plan your own papers.

Preparing a file that stands out

The flagship awards are won on the quality of the file, not only the grades. A few habits help.

Write the motivation letter or essay around one specific story, not a list of adjectives. Say what you studied, what you built or led, and what you plan to do with the degree. Keep it honest and direct.

Ask recommenders who know you well, give them your CV and a summary of what you want to highlight, and give them time. A recommendation that describes real work is worth more than a famous name.

If you reach an interview, as Khalifa University graduate programmes require, practise answering questions aloud. Our list of university admission interview questions is a good place to start.

This is also the step where many applicants feel stuck, because they cannot tell which documents are weak. If that is you, the Truescho Apply-For-Me file review service is one option: it combines a written evaluation, a video call, notes on up to three of your ready documents and a shortlist of three suitable scholarships with deadlines, for 50 EUR as listed on the page on 5 November 2026. It does not guarantee any award.

Mistakes that cost expats awards

• Assuming the national scheme applies to you. It is for Emirati students and children of Emirati women.
• Waiting for admission to ask about aid where the form asks first. At Khalifa University and UAE University the request sits inside the admission application.
• Applying for the wrong flagship award. The American University of Sharjah separates students who finished school inside the UAE from those who finished abroad.
• Missing the equivalency step. It is mandatory at Khalifa University for private schools inside the UAE.
• Treating "partial" as "free". A 75% discount still leaves 25% of tuition, plus housing and living costs.
• Using old numbers. Awards, percentages and dates change by intake, so read the page for the cycle you are applying to.

Frequently asked questions

Can expats get a free scholarship in the UAE?

Yes, but full funding is uncommon. Khalifa University, UAE University and the American University of Sharjah offer full-tuition awards to non-Emirati students with very high results, and graduate research places can include a stipend. Most other offers are discounts, so plan for a mix of partial funding and your own budget.

Are UAE scholarships only for Emirati citizens?

No. The federal national scheme is limited to Emirati students and children of Emirati women, and some awards at individual universities are Emirati-only. But Khalifa University, UAE University, the American University of Sharjah, NYU Abu Dhabi and several private universities have awards that accept other nationalities.

Do I apply for the scholarship before or after the university?

It depends on the university. At Khalifa University and UAE University the request is part of the admission application. At the American University of Sharjah's flagship awards and at the American University in Dubai, you need an admission offer first. When in doubt, apply for admission first and read the scholarship page for timing.

What grades do I need for a full-tuition award?

The pages I read ask for very high results. UAE University lists an average of 98% for its 100% award and Khalifa University lists a minimum of 80% for some curricula. The American University of Sharjah lists 98%, 40 IB points or straight As for its President's Scholarship. Language scores of IELTS 7.0 to 7.5 are common.

Can a PhD student from abroad get funded in the UAE?

Often yes. UAE University's PhD scholarship for all nationalities covers full tuition, a stipend and health insurance for up to four years, and Khalifa University PhD awards may add housing, travel and visa support. You need strong master's results and a research fit with the university's priorities.

Does NYU Abu Dhabi give aid to non-Emirati students?

Yes. The university says it accepts applications for financial support from all students regardless of citizenship. All aid for non-Emirati students is need-based and requires a CSS Profile, and you learn the offer with your admission decision. The amount depends on your family's situation, so there is no fixed figure.

What if I only get a partial scholarship?

Compare it with the total cost: tuition after the discount, housing, insurance and living costs. Then look for extra help, such as the American University of Sharjah's need-based grant, assistant roles at graduate level, or a lower-cost programme. If the numbers still do not work, choose another university.

Your next step

Pick two or three universities from the master table that match your curriculum and your situation, open each official page, and write down the form, the order and the date. Then build your documents against the earliest deadline. If you are still comparing destinations on cost, our guide to studying medicine in Turkey in English shows how fees compare for a very different, self-funded route, and our overview of Turkish scholarships covers another country with funded places.

Want someone to handle this step for you? The Truescho Apply-For-Me initial consultation is a 45-minute video session with a specialist advisor who reads your academic file with you, points out strengths and gaps, and sends a written roadmap within 3 days, for 20 EUR as listed on 5 November 2026.

Sources

• Khalifa University undergraduate scholarships: https://www.ku.ac.ae/undergraduate-scholarships
• UAE University undergraduate scholarships: https://www.uaeu.ac.ae/en/admission/undergraduate-scholarships.shtml
• American University of Sharjah financial grants and scholarships: https://www.aus.edu/admissions/financial-grants-and-scholarships
• NYU Abu Dhabi scholarships and financial aid: https://nyuad.nyu.edu/en/admissions/undergraduate/scholarships-and-financial-aid.html
• UAE government portal, student admission and qualification recognition: https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/education/higher-education/Student-admission-and-qualification-recognition