← Back to homeThe Spanish School of Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi, UAE · Private
Illustration · Abu Dhabi
The Spanish School of Abu Dhabi (SSAD) is a private Spanish school in the Al Bateen district of Abu Dhabi; the school calls itself the only Spanish school in the UAE ("the only Spanish School in the UAE"). It is listed in the Spanish Ministry of Education's register as a private Spanish school abroad and, by its own account, is recognised by both the Spanish and the Emirati authorities (ADEK and the UAE Ministry of Education). It teaches the Spanish curriculum: nursery (Educación Infantil, Pre-KG, KG 1 and KG 2), primary (Primaria, Grades 1-6) and secondary (ESO); the oldest class at present is Grade 9, i.e. 3.º ESO. The secondary page promises the Spanish ESO certificate after Grade 10 (4.º ESO) and then the Bachillerato in Grades 11-12. Teaching is in Spanish ("The school provides a Spanish-language education"), with English and Arabic taught as subjects, and the school calls its education trilingual; Arabic and the Emirati curriculum subjects are taught by UAE Ministry of Education (MOE) teachers. The school has more than 40 nationalities. Primary and secondary lessons run from 8:00 to 15:30, with clubs and sports until 16:30; nursery runs from 8:00 to 14:00 with After school care until 16:00. Each nursery and primary class has a teaching assistant and a separate Arabic assistant, and there are support teachers for mathematics, Spanish and English, plus an inclusion and guidance department. The school also runs a Spanish Language Center.
Key facts
Tuition
≈ $9 360–10 790 a year
34 375–39 625 AED
Programmes
Spanish programme
Admits from
3 years · Pre-School
Languages of instruction
Spanish
Languages taught
English, Arabic
About the fees Annual fees for the 2026-2027 school year in UAE dirhams, approved by ADEK: Pre-KG, KG 1 and KG 2 - 31875 tuition plus 2500 for educational resources, 34375 in total; Grades 1-6 - 33575 plus 2500, 36075 in total; Grades 7-8 - 33575 plus 3500, 37075 in total; Grade 9 - 36125 plus 3500, 39625 in total. The tuition range shows the full amount including resources. Fees are paid in three instalments: the first (part of tuition plus resources) by 1 August, the second by 1 December, the third by 1 March. The school bus run by Emirates Transport costs 5000 dirhams a year per child; meals from Food Nation are extra.
Admissions The school admits children of any nationality: it describes itself as a school for pupils "de cualquier nacionalidad" ("of any nationality") and "from all backgrounds", with more than 40 nationalities. Applications are accepted all year round, online only; when there are no places the application goes on a waiting list and must be renewed for each year. The steps are: application, invitation to an assessment and tour, decision (admit, reject or waiting list), payment of the registration fee. Nursery placement is by age (3 years - Pre-KG, 4 years - KG 1, 5 years - KG 2), with age counted at 15 September. From Grade 1 there is an entrance assessment in Spanish and mathematics. Spanish is not required but strongly recommended ("fluency in Spanish is not a criterion for admission, but highly recommended"); assessments are set in Spanish, English or both. However, from Grade 2 Spanish speakers have priority, and the admissions policy requires non-Spanish speakers to reach a minimum level in the entrance test and also enrols them in a Spanish Language Immersion Program (SLIP). The school does not admit children who only want to learn Spanish rather than follow the full programme. Staff children study free of charge.
Stages and year groups Grades Pre-KG - Grade 9 (3.º ESO). The Spanish curriculum: Educación Infantil (Pre-KG, KG 1, KG 2), Educación Primaria (Grades 1-6) and Educación Secundaria Obligatoria (Grade 7 - 1.º ESO, Grade 8 - 2.º ESO, Grade 9 - 3.º ESO); the fee table and the staff list show Grade 9 as the oldest class. The school says ESO leads to "su primer título oficial español al terminar el 4º curso -Grado 10-" ("their first official Spanish certificate at the end of Year 4 of ESO, Grade 10") and prepares for the "posterior Bachillerato (Grados 11 y 12)" ("subsequent Bachillerato, Grades 11 and 12"). Alongside it run Arabic and the Emirati curriculum subjects with UAE Ministry of Education (MOE) teachers, and for nursery the KG MOE Curriculum. The school does not mention the Emirati national diploma or the IB.
Address Al Bateen, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
MEFPDSpain's state register of schools lists it in its "abroad" section as a private Spanish school (Centro Privado Español en el Extranjero), code 60009259. The school currently runs up to Grade 9 (3.º ESO); Arabic and the Emirati subjects are taught by teachers of the UAE Ministry of Education.
school 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
MEFPDMinistry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports of Spain
A school of the Spanish education system abroad: run by the Spanish state, or a private Spanish school supervised by the ministry, or a school under an agreement with the ministry. The curriculum is Spanish, and leavers receive the Spanish certificate. Every such school is named in Spain's state register of schools, each with its own code.
What the badge means for this school. This is a Spanish school abroad, and that can be checked in Spain's state register. The entry is not a quality inspection: a school is on the register as part of the Spanish system, not as the outcome of an assessment. The curriculum and the certificate are Spanish. What other programmes the school offers, and what it charges, are on its own website. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Spanish programme
The state school programme of Spain, with the Spanish certificates: ESO at 16 and the Bachiller after the baccalaureate.
What this means for this school. The programme is set by the Spanish Ministry of Education, which also names the school in its state register of schools, in the "abroad" section. Leavers receive Spanish qualifications: the Graduado en ESO after secondary school and the título de Bachiller after the baccalaureate. They are used for entry to Spanish universities; in other countries they are matched to local ones.
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 poolnot stated on the website
✓Sports hallSports hall (polideportivo) and a psychomotor room for nursery
✓LaboratoriesScience lab
✓Theatre or assembly hallAuditorium
·Librarynot stated on the website
✓CateringDining hall, meals from Food Nation
✓School transportSchool buses covering four zones: Al Reem Island, Abu Dhabi City, Al Raha, Center
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Art studio · Makerspace
Clubs and activities: Chess · Football · School Band · STEAM World · Basketball · Theatre · Multideporte · Art Attack · Yoga · Dance · Friendship Bracelets · School Newsletter · Volleyball
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
✓Teacher qualifications
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
·Students per teacher or class sizenot stated
What the listings show: The school says all teachers hold degrees and are licensed to teach their stage both in the UAE and in the Spanish system; primary teachers are subject specialists.
Each nursery and primary class has a Teacher Assistant and a separate Arabic assistant; there are support teachers for mathematics, Spanish and English, an English department, an Emirati curriculum (MOE) department, an inclusion and guidance department and a Spanish language centre. Leadership: Principal Eva Sanchez, Vice Principal Angela Devore, Head of Studies Antonio Campos.
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 roomnot stated on the website
✓CounsellorAn inclusion and guidance department, a Head of Pastoral, a social worker, a Student Mental Health Policy and a Social Emotional Growth Program.
✓Child protection policyThe school publishes a Safeguarding Policy, a Student Protection Policy, a Health & Safety Policy, an Emergency Response Plan and an Accident and Incident Reporting Policy; the staff includes a Health and Safety Officer.
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
✓Anti-bullying policyA separate Anti-Bullying Policy.
School buses are run by trained drivers with support staff.
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%)72 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 data70 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data80 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data78 "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