United Arab Emirates / Entry requirements

General requirements for undergraduate courses

Due to differences in the UK and UAE education systems, students with the Al-Thanawaya Al-Aama will be required to follow an approved international foundation course. Students who have an overall average of 90% or above in the Al-Thanawaya Al-Aama (including 90% in Maths and Physics) would be considered for the University’s Science and Engineering with an integrated foundation year programme. Applications for the University’s Biosciences with a foundation year programme would be considered following completion of the Al-Thanawaya Al-Aama on a case by case basis.

Students who have achieved an overall Al-Thanawaya Al-Aama, secondary school certificate grade of 85% or higher would be considered for the foundation programmes (Engineering and Science, Humanities and Social Sciences (including Management and Law), Biosciences, Pharmacy and Psychology) run in partnership with the University by INTO Manchester. Subject specific requirements may apply.

If you are completing three GCE A-level subjects, or the International Baccalaureate, you will be considered for direct entry to Year 1 provided that your predicted grades meet the minimum requirements stated in the individual course webpages.

If you are currently studying for a US diploma at school we would generally consider you for the international foundation course and the minimum requirement will be a GPA of 3.0/4.0. SAT I and SAT II tests are not required but will be considered a bonus (provided you have the minimum GPA). Under certain circumstances, three Advanced Placements (AP) subjects with high grades on top of SAT I/II may be considered for direct entry into Year 1.

General requirements for postgraduate/research courses

For master’s programmes we consider a first degree from a recognised UAE university with a high percentage or GPA.

UAE master’s degrees from recognised universities (classified as Merit or above, or equivalent) are generally considered for PhD entry at The University of Manchester.

English language requirements

All applicants to the University (from the UK and overseas) are required to show evidence of English language proficiency.

UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) requires that every student from outside the UK and the EU must show evidence of a minimum level of English language in order to be granted a UK visa (Tier 4 visa) to study at undergraduate or postgraduate level. This level is often referred to as the ‘B2 level’.

Additionally, our individual Schools may ask for specific English language proficiency levels that are necessary for their academic programmes. In most cases these requirements are likely to be higher than the B2 level. Further information about our English language policy, including a list of some of the English language qualifications we accept, can be found here.

Some Schools ask that the appropriate score has been met before you apply for a course, while others give conditional offers subject to applicants achieving our general entry requirement level of English language proficiency before starting the course.

Under certain circumstances, the University may consider IGCSE/O-level English, or International Baccalaureate Language (English) or Language and Literature (English) at high grades as a recognised English language qualification.

Other entry requirements

Please note that this is generic information only. Faculties and Schools have different entry requirements and some qualifications may not be acceptable for certain courses, so it is important to check with the School directly before you apply.

Some courses have additional entry requirements such as previous work experience, submission of written work with the application or previous study of a particular subject.