The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has a widely varied landscape, ranging from towering dunes to gravel plains and rugged mountains. The UAE is a federation of seven emirates: Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah, and Umm Al Quwain.
Modern health care in the area that became the UAE developed mainly during the mid-20th century, when the region was still known as the Trucial States. Early hospitals and clinics, including Oasis Hospital in Al Ain and Al Maktoum Hospital in Dubai, helped lay the foundation for the country’s later investment in health services and medical education. UAE medical education has continued to improve with one main goal: to deliver a high standard of patient care.
In this article, we look at the best medical schools in the UAE.
Top Medical Schools in the United Arab Emirates
1. United Arab Emirates University
United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) is one of the UAE’s most established public universities. It was founded in 1976, and its College of Medicine and Health Sciences was established in 1984. The college later received the Hamdan Award for Best Medical College in the Arab World, and UAEU now enrolls approximately 14,000 Emirati and international students across the university.
UAEU’s Doctor of Medicine program is a six-year program divided into three two-year phases: Foundations of Medicine, Pre-Clerkship, and Clerkship. Admission to the MD program is highly competitive and, under the current UAEU admissions policy, is limited to UAE nationals and children of Emirati mothers.
2. University of Sharjah
The University of Sharjah established its College of Medicine in 2004 and has grown into one of the major medical education providers in the UAE. Its Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) program is a six-year program completed in three educational phases.
The first phase is the Foundation Year. The second phase is the pre-clerkship phase, which includes Years 1 to 3 and ends with a comprehensive examination. Students who pass this examination move to Phase III, which consists of Years 4 and 5. During the clerkship phase, students complete clinical training in various departments in public hospitals in Sharjah.
3. Khalifa University
Khalifa University’s College of Medicine and Health Sciences opened its doors to students in Fall 2019 for the UAE’s first post-graduate Doctor of Medicine program. The college offers a Doctor of Medicine (MD) program and a Pre-Medicine Bridge program.
The MD program is modeled after the American medical education system and is a four-year, post-baccalaureate program. Applicants need a bachelor’s degree before admission and must submit an MCAT score; Khalifa University lists 500 as the minimum MCAT score required to apply. Khalifa University also emphasizes health and life-sciences research across areas such as biomedical science, clinical medicine, medicine and society, physicianship, research, technology, and innovation.
4. Gulf Medical University
Gulf Medical University (GMU) is a private health professions university in Ajman with origins in 1998. Its College of Medicine offers a six-year Doctor of Medicine program, a four-year graduate-entry Doctor of Medicine program, and other medicine and health-science programs.
The six-year Doctor of Medicine program is organized in an organ-system-based sequence that integrates biomedical sciences, clinical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and patient-care skills. Graduation requires successful completion of 224 credits of coursework and passing a comprehensive exit examination with a score of at least 65%. GMU students also benefit from clinical and professional training opportunities within the university’s health-care network, including Thumbay facilities.
5. Ajman University
Ajman University’s College of Medicine received accreditation in 2018 and is one of the newer medical colleges in the UAE. The college offers a six-year full-time Doctor of Medicine program for students entering after high school.
The program is now structured in a 2+4 format: two years of premedical education followed by four years of integrated medical education, including two years of pre-clerkship study and two years of clinical clerkships. Admission is open to students from all nationalities and high school curricula, including the UAE National Curriculum, American, British, CBSE, French, and other systems, provided they meet the program’s requirements.
6. Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences
Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences (MBRU) is a medical university in Dubai. The university was announced in 2014 and formally established by decree in 2016. The College of Medicine welcomed its first cohort of medical students in 2016.
MBRU’s current undergraduate medicine degree is listed as a six-year Doctor of Medicine (MD) program. The program was previously listed as Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) by the UAE Commission for Academic Accreditation, with the MD name replacing the earlier program name from 2024. MBRU is now part of Dubai Health, Dubai’s integrated academic health system, and offers programs through its colleges of medicine, dental medicine, and nursing and midwifery.
Besides its faculty and academic curriculum, the university has modern classrooms, laboratories, simulation facilities, and clinical-skills resources. It also emphasizes research in areas relevant to public health and clinical care.
7. Ras Al Khaimah Medical and Health Sciences University
Ras Al Khaimah Medical and Health Sciences University (RAKMHSU) began in 2006 as a comprehensive health sciences university in the UAE. Its RAK College of Medical Sciences previously offered an MBBS program and now offers a Doctor of Medicine program.
The current MD program is a six-year program made up of two years of premedical education and four years of preclinical and clinical clerkship courses. It carries a total of 224 to 226 credits, depending on the study-plan version, and follows an integrated and problem-based approach to medical science.
The curriculum integrates basic sciences with clinical sciences so that students can apply medical knowledge to health care and develop a professional and compassionate approach to patient management. Students who want to practice medicine in the UAE must also complete the applicable internship and licensing requirements after graduation.
FAQs: Studying Medicine in UAE
Can International Students Enroll in Medical Schools in the United Arab Emirates?
Yes, many UAE medical schools accept international students, but eligibility varies by institution and program. For example, private and semi-private institutions such as the University of Sharjah, Gulf Medical University, Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ajman University, Dubai Medical University, and Ras Al Khaimah Medical and Health Sciences University list admission routes that may be open to students from different curricula and nationalities. However, UAEU’s Doctor of Medicine program is currently limited to UAE nationals and children of Emirati mothers.
What is the Medical Curriculum Like in Medical Schools in the United Arab Emirates?
Medical curricula in the UAE vary by institution. Many high-school-entry medicine programs are six years long, often including premedical or foundation study, pre-clerkship study, and clinical clerkships. Some universities also offer four-year graduate-entry or post-baccalaureate MD programs for applicants who already hold a bachelor’s degree.
For example, the United Arab Emirates University Doctor of Medicine program is a six-year program divided into Foundations of Medicine, Pre-Clerkship, and Clerkship phases. The University of Sharjah MBBS program is also six years long and includes a Foundation Year, pre-clerkship years, and clerkship years. Khalifa University’s MD program, by contrast, is a four-year post-baccalaureate program.
The United Arab Emirates has several strong medical and health-science institutions with modern curricula and facilities. Each university has its own approach to medical or health-science education, ranging from public institutions such as United Arab Emirates University to private and specialized institutions such as Gulf Medical University, Dubai Medical University, and Ras Al Khaimah Medical and Health Sciences University. Students should compare program accreditation, curriculum structure, admission requirements, clinical training opportunities, and licensing pathways before applying.
We hope this article on the best medical schools in UAE was helpful. To learn more information like this, check out the Study in UAE and Available Programs for International Students!
