The University of Sharjah (UoS) was founded in 1997 and is one of the UAE’s largest universities, with 14 colleges and more than 150 programmes. In the QS World University Rankings 2027, published in June 2026, it rose from 328th to 283rd in the world, entering the global top 300 for the first time. That made it fourth in the UAE.
Admission for fall 2026 has closed, but UoS usually opens a spring intake in December for selected programmes. Here are 10 things you can do to give yourself the best chance, based on the University of Sharjah’s own guidance and official UAE government information.
1. Choose your programme and its language
Most UoS degrees are taught in English, including all programmes in business administration, engineering, computing and informatics, medicine, dental medicine, pharmacy, health sciences and public policy. Sharia, most humanities and some communication degrees are taught in Arabic, and law is offered in both Arabic and English. Most programmes take students in fall and spring, but medicine and dental surgery admit only in fall. Except in medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, health sciences and fine arts, men and women study on separate campuses.
2. Apply in the right admission period
You apply online through the UoS admissions portal and pay a non-refundable application fee of AED 360. For fall, early admission usually opens in May, and regular admission opens after high school results come out in June. Spring admission usually opens in December, for selected programmes only. UoS replies within three to seven working days, and applications received after the admission period aren’t considered. University of Sharjah: bachelor’s admissions.
3. Meet the minimum average for your college
Your high school certificate must be no more than three years old, or one year old for medicine and dental medicine. The minimum average is 70 per cent for business administration, sciences, computer science and the Arabic-taught colleges, and 75 per cent for law. Engineering, cybersecurity engineering and computer engineering need 75 per cent on an advanced or scientific track, or 85 per cent on a general track. Pharmacy and dental medicine need 85 per cent, and medicine needs 95 per cent. These are minimums, and admission is competitive, with priority given to UAE citizens and students with high grades.
4. Check your subject grades
Many programmes also need minimum grades in specific subjects. Engineering asks for 80 per cent in physics, maths and either chemistry or biology, and medicine and dental medicine need 90 per cent in maths and two sciences. If you’re slightly below a subject requirement in most programmes, you can be admitted conditionally and take a zero-credit remedial course in your first semester. This isn’t allowed in medicine or dentistry. If you have an Indian or Pakistani board certificate, you need a science track for science programmes, and your grade 10 and grade 12 certificates must both be attested.
5. Meet the English requirement
English-taught programmes need IELTS Academic 5.5, TOEFL iBT 61, TOEFL ITP 500 or an equivalent PTE Academic score. TOEFL ITP is only accepted if it was taken at UoS or at the AMIDEAST head offices in Dubai or Abu Dhabi, and home editions of the tests aren’t accepted. Results must be less than two years old. If your score is too low, you’ll be placed in an Intensive English Program first. Practise with our free IELTS, TOEFL and PTE practice tests.
6. Get your documents attested
Certificates from outside the UAE must be attested by the education authority in your country, your foreign ministry and the UAE embassy, and you need an equivalency certificate from the UAE Ministry of Education. You also need certified copies of your grade 10, 11 and 12 certificates, proof of 12 years of schooling and proof that your certificate is accepted by government universities in your country. British-curriculum students can apply early with predicted grades and get a conditional offer.
7. Reserve your seat quickly
If you’re accepted, you reserve your seat by paying AED 12,000, which goes towards your tuition. If you withdraw or don’t enrol, AED 3,000 of it isn’t refunded. Applicants to medicine and dental medicine pay an extra AED 1,500 competition fee, and if they’re admitted they must pay the first instalment of tuition within one week of the results. Pay as soon as you can, because places in popular majors fill up.
8. Understand the fees and discounts
For 2026-27, most business, computing, civil engineering and electrical engineering degrees cost AED 63,740 a year (AED 31,870 a semester). Several other engineering degrees, including mechanical and architectural engineering, cost about AED 69,500 to AED 70,200, pharmacy AED 67,680, and medicine AED 130,430 a year after a foundation year costing AED 97,820. Campus housing ranges from AED 2,520 to AED 11,740 a semester. UoS doesn’t offer scholarships of its own, but it gives a 50 per cent discount on your first semester if you scored 90 per cent or more in high school (except in medicine and dentistry), and term discounts of 15 to 40 per cent for very high GPAs. University of Sharjah: tuition fees.
9. Get your student residence visa through the University of Sharjah
If you aren’t a UAE or GCC national and don’t already live in the UAE, the University of Sharjah sponsors your student residence visa once you’ve accepted your place. The university first gets you an entry permit, which you use to travel to the UAE. After you arrive, you have a medical fitness test and register for your Emirates ID, and your residence visa is then issued. Your passport must be valid for at least six months. Don’t enter the UAE on a tourist visa while your permit is being processed, because changing your status later costs extra and causes delays. If your parents live in the UAE, they can sponsor you instead. You must study full-time to keep a university-sponsored visa, and health insurance is compulsory. UAE Government portal: residence visa for studying in the UAE.
10. Plan for work during and after your studies
Working while you study is tightly controlled in the UAE. Because your visa is sponsored by the University of Sharjah, you need its permission before you take any job, and the main options are paid on-campus roles and internships approved by the university. A private employer can only hire you with a student training and employment permit from the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE), which lasts three months. The UAE has no general post-study work visa, so after you graduate you’ll usually need an employer to sponsor a work visa. Recent graduates of universities in the world’s top 500 can get a single-entry jobseeker visit visa of 60, 90 or 120 days to look for work without a sponsor. Top graduates of UAE universities can apply for a 10-year Golden Visa within two years of graduating if their cumulative GPA is at least 3.5 at a university in the Ministry of Education’s Category A, or 3.8 at a Category B university. MOHRE: student training and employment permit, UAE Government portal: jobseeker visit visa and ICP: Golden Residency guide.
Applying for a master’s or PhD at UoS?
UoS offers master’s, doctoral and postgraduate diploma programmes, with evening classes available for postgraduate students. In 2025-26, new postgraduate students got a 30 per cent discount on their first semester’s tuition, which continued for those with very high grades, although some programmes were excluded. See our 50 sample SOPs and free GRE practice tests.
Be ambitious, but apply to a balanced list
Places in popular majors at UoS fill quickly, so apply to other options too. Read our guides to Khalifa University, United Arab Emirates University, American University of Sharjah and Abu Dhabi University. Our guide to studying in the UAE explains how the system works, and our free study abroad assessment can help you build a shortlist.
Information was taken from the University of Sharjah’s official bachelor’s admissions, admission tests, tuition fee, housing fee, discount and undergraduate FAQ pages, the UAE Government portal, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security, and the QS World University Rankings 2027, and checked in October 2026. Admissions rules, deadlines, fees and immigration rules can change, so always confirm the details on the University of Sharjah’s admissions website before you apply. StudyAbroadMarket is not affiliated with the University of Sharjah.