Dubai International Academy Al Barsha
Very Good Al Barsha, Dubai · IB
- KHDA rating
- Very Good
High quality across the board with minor areas to improve — often better value than Outstanding. Ratings are from the last full inspection cycle (2023–24).
- Annual fees
- AED 47,807 to 84,928 a year
Varies by year group; confirm current fees with the school. 2026–27 fees are frozen by KHDA directive.
- Curriculum
- IB
- Established
- Not recorded
- School transport
- Bus service available
- Location
- Al Barsha, Dubai
District-level pin for Al Barsha — use the Google Maps link for the exact gate.
We could not verify an official website for this school, so no link is shown.
Check travel time from your location
Opens live directions in Google Maps — real traffic from your own address beats any published estimate. School-run traffic peaks roughly 7–8am; test your route at drop-off time.
In context
Its mid-range fee is in line with the median for IB schools in this guide (AED 63,000). It is one of 46 schools in this guide currently rated Very Good.
Worth comparing: Bilingual French International School (AED 50,000 to 77,000 a year) — a lower-fee option in the same area; Emirates International School Jumeirah (AED 48,000 to 73,000 a year) — a lower-fee school with the same Very Good rating and curriculum.
These comparisons are computed from the verified data in this register, not editorial opinion.
What the inspectors said
Paraphrased from the last full DSIB inspection (2023–24 cycle) and its published record — read the complete report on the official KHDA directory.
Strengths the inspectors named:
- Very Good in 2023–24 — a clear upward trajectory from consecutive Good ratings since the school opened in 2018, reached in only six years.
- One of the few Dubai schools running the complete IB continuum — Primary Years, Middle Years, Diploma and the Career-related Programme — from Pre-KG to Grade 12.
- Institutional IB expertise rare in a school of this age, drawn from the same group that runs the Outstanding-rated Dubai International Academy in Emirates Hills.
- A 23-acre campus with substantial facilities, at fees competitive for a full IB continuum school.
What they asked the school to improve:
- Teacher turnover was 31% in 2022 and had fallen to 20% by the 2023 inspection — improving, and still worth asking about in a school that is scaling.
- Additional costs sit outside tuition — stationery, trips, uniform, external examinations, meals and transport — so build the full figure before comparing schools.
- Six years old and still growing: ask which year groups are at capacity and how the upper school is being staffed.
Inclusion (students of determination): Very Good — improved from Good the year before, with inspectors recording that the inclusion lead, principal and governor are all committed. The SEN register grew from 124 students at the school’s first inspection in March 2022 to 146 two years later. A Head of Inclusion manages separate Primary and Secondary inclusion teams supporting needs from Level 1 to Level 3, with learning support assistants used mainly for English-as-an-additional-language students, who receive both in-class and online support. The fee position is explicit: in-class and pull-out support is provided at no charge, and where a student requires one-to-one support the cost is covered by parents. See the special educational needs guide for the questions to ask on a visit.
Inspector summaries are being added school by school as each report is read — 169 of 169 so far, dated per cycle, never invented. A school without a summary yet is unread, not unjudged.
Visit kit
Questions worth asking on a tour — tuned to this school’s rating and curriculum:
- Who leads inclusion here — and may we meet them before enrolling?
- How much staff turnover did you have last year, and why?
- What are actual class sizes this term — not the maximum?
- How and how often will I hear about my child’s progress?
- How long is the real waiting list for my child’s year group, and how does sibling priority work?
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Special educational needs? Read the inclusion guide before you visit.
Other schools in Al Barsha
- GEMS Albarsha National School — Acceptable, AED 10,000 to 20,000 a year
- Repton Al Barsha — Very Good, AED 53,540 to 89,774 a year
- Nord Anglia International School Dubai — Outstanding, AED 69,625 to 105,288 a year
- Kings School Al Barsha — Outstanding, AED 54,000 to 98,000 a year
Work at this school? Correct or update this record — verified corrections are made promptly and logged publicly.