Private schools across the UAE announce massive reductions in school fees to attract students
With the beginning of the new academic year rapidly approaching, private schools have increased their street and social media advertising, offering savings of 10% to 30% on tuition for various levels of study (excluding transportation, uniforms, and textbooks).
Through the schools' social media channels, the advertisements attracted the attention of parents of students. Many of them enquired about the advertised schools' locations, academic programs, extracurricular activities, and rankings relative to other schools.
The goal of offering discounts before the start of the school year, according to school administrations, is to draw students owing to the availability of open seats and classes as a result of building expansion. When the adverts are taken down from billboards and social media, the savings on tuition fees end, she noted, adding that "once the number of students is complete, the discounts will stop."
Discounts include students at different academic levels
She clarified that the discounts apply to students at all academic levels as long as they pay 30% of the tuition up front and the remaining balance throughout four payments. The savings, she continued, do not apply to the cost of school buses, uniforms, or books because such expenses are "separate additional services, run by companies contracting with schools."Wael Obaid, Hani Selim, Hana Abbas, and Rawayat Khalidi, the parents of the students, stated that the reductions enable the families of the students to enroll their children in schools without worrying about payment due dates.
Families of some kids claimed that they were watching for tuition fee reductions from private schools so that they could take advantage of them and lessen the financial responsibilities that they carry with them throughout the academic year.
Those who have three or more children enrolled in private schools are the group that benefits the most from tuition fee discounts, they added. If the annual cost of tuition for three children exceeds 50,000 dirhams, their tuition fees are reduced to 35,000 dirhams, and they receive a discount of 15,000 dirhams.
Before enrolling their children in private schools, they said they monitor the discounts to learn more about their curriculum and to check on the quality of their education, emphasizing that enrollment in schools is contingent on the caliber of instruction.
