← Back to homeGEMS Cambridge International School - Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi, UAE · Private
Illustration · Abu Dhabi
GEMS Cambridge International School - Abu Dhabi stands in Baniyas, in the Bawabat Al Sharq district, and runs the British curriculum right through from FS1 to Year 13 - the school calls itself an "all through school". The curriculum is mapped from Foundation Stage to Year 13 and leads to GCSE, International GCSE, A Level and International A Level qualifications. The Principal and CEO is Stephen McKernan. The school says its results are significantly above the UK national average and that over the past three years its students have been accepted at 97 universities in 26 countries. The campus is a large one: nine science laboratories, seven computer suites, new libraries, three art studios, choral and ensemble music rooms, a radio station studio, a new Sixth Form centre, a 25-metre pool and a beginner pool, cricket nets and playing fields, a new full-size astroturf pitch, indoor sports areas and multi-purpose halls, a separate Foundation play area, a canteen and a book store. The medical dispensary is staffed by three HAAD-qualified nurses and works alongside the Department of Health. What a parent needs to know: the school has outsourced transport to School Transport Services LLC, and it is paid for separately, as are books, food, examinations and extracurricular activities outside school.
Key facts
Tuition
≈ $6 279–10 984 a year
23 060–40 340 AED
Programmes
Cambridge · IGCSE, A-Level
About the fees Fees for 2026-2027, approved by ADEK (AED a year paid one year in advance): FS1 - 23,060, FS2 - 23,730, Years 1 and 2 - 28,430, Years 3 and 4 - 30,950, Years 5 and 6 - 33,240, Years 7 and 8 - 35,640, Years 9 and 10 - 37,940, Year 11 - 39,200, Years 12 and 13 - 40,340. Fees may be paid a year in advance or by term, with termly instalments of 40, 30 and 30 per cent. On a new admission a fee equal to 5 per cent of the annual tuition is due: it is non-refundable and non-transferable but is set against the first term's fee, and is refunded under ADEK policy if notice is given before the academic year starts. To hold a place for the following year a re-enrolment fee of the same 5 per cent is paid, also set against fees. Invoices go to the fee sponsor two months before the year begins; payment is due in full or by the tenth working day of August, December and April.
Stages and year groups Grades FS1 - Year 13. The curriculum is mapped right through from Foundation Stage to Year 13 and leads to GCSE, International GCSE, A Level and International A Level. The senior stage has its own new Sixth Form centre.
Address Bawabat Al Sharq, Baniyas City
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
Cambridge · IGCSE, A-Level · authorised programmeGEMS · school is part of the networkschool is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations → What stands behind each entry
CambridgeCambridge International Education
Part of the University of Cambridge. It allows a school to teach the Cambridge programmes and to enter pupils for the exams. There are four stages and they are authorised separately: primary, lower secondary, IGCSE and A Level. If the stages are known they are named in the line below; if that line is missing, the school does not publish them, and the Cambridge registry does not show stages either - it gives only the name of the centre, the country and whether private candidates are accepted. Cambridge calls what it does registration rather than accreditation, and the network holds about ten thousand schools.
What the badge means for this school. The school is allowed to run this programme and to award its certificate. This is a confirmation of the programme, not a judgement on the school as a whole. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it. At this school: IGCSE (ages 14-16), A-Level (ages 16-18). IGCSE means exams at around Year 10 or 11, the British counterpart of a lower secondary leaving certificate. A-Level is the senior years, and their results are what British and many other universities admit on.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →GEMSschool network
GEMS Education is a private school group that describes itself on its own site as one of the oldest and largest K-12 (to Grade 12 / Year 13) private education providers in the world. The site dates its start to 1959 («Our story began in 1959«, «65+ Years of Legacy«), while another page on the same site says «over 60 Years of Legacy«. School counts on the site disagree: the homepage says both «52 schools across the UAE, Qatar and Egypt« and «Choose from our list of over 47 schools«, while the Our Company page says GEMS has schools «in the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, Europe and North America«. Students: «200,000 students from over 176 countries« (Our Company) and «over 200,000« (homepage). On ownership the site is explicit: «GEMS Education own, operate and manage schools globally« — it both owns and manages, but does not say which schools fall into which category.
What this means for this school. The network owns or operates the school. Its accreditation and programme authorisation the school obtains separately, in its own name.
Exams and destinations from the school's official website
The school publishes nothing about where its leavers go: no share going on to university, no exam results, no list of universities.
Facilities from the school's official website
✓Swimming pool
✓Sports hall
✓Laboratories
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
✓Library
✓Catering
✓School transport
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Sports ground or field · Art studio · Playground
Campus: Nine fully equipped science laboratories and seven computer suites, with computer access in the libraries too; wireless networking throughout the campus, in every classroom and in break-out areas. New libraries, three art studios, choral and ensemble music rooms, a radio station studio, a new Sixth Form centre, and design, technology and media suites. A 25-metre swimming pool and a beginner pool, cricket nets and playing fields, a new full-size astroturf pitch, indoor sports areas and multi-purpose halls, and a separate equipped play area for Foundation. A medical dispensary, a canteen with healthy snacks and drinks, and a book store. Transport is outsourced to School Transport Services LLC.
Teaching staff
The school publishes neither the number of its teachers nor their qualifications.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
·Access controlnot stated on the website
✓Nurse or medical room
·Counsellornot stated on the website
·Child protection policynot stated on the website
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
·Anti-bullying policynot stated on the website
The medical dispensary is staffed by three HAAD-qualified nurses. All cases of injury or illness receive immediate attention, with emergency transport to hospital where needed; students have regular medical examinations, and the dispensary works closely with the Department of Health and Medical Services.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
Academics and programmes (16%)85 Community rating (16%)no dataparent reviews are needed: the criterion switches on at the fifth verified one Exams and destinations (12%) scored on disclosed data55 Safety and wellbeing (12%) scored on disclosed data60 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data90 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data55 "Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 8 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives.
The full methodology → Similar schools in the country