Dubai private schools ranked among the world’s top 10 in mathematics, science and reading in the latest PISA 2025 international assessment, recording significant progress compared with 2022.

Dubai private schools ranked sixth globally in reading with an average score of 501. They placed eighth worldwide in both mathematics, with 511 points, and science, with 522 points.

Dubai also ranked ninth globally in the new computational problem-solving category, with an average score of 534—34 points above the OECD average.

Progress Since 2022

The results mark a significant improvement over PISA 2022, when Dubai private schools ranked ninth globally in mathematics, 13th in reading and 14th in science.

Dubai schools have participated in PISA since 2009 and improved their performance across six consecutive assessment cycles. During that period, average scores rose by 37 points in mathematics, 36 in science and 22 in reading.

Around 9,600 students from 168 Dubai private schools participated in PISA 2025. Globally, more than 760,000 students from over 90 countries and economies took part.

IB Schools Lead Performance

Students enrolled in International Baccalaureate programmes recorded the highest average scores among Dubai’s curricula, achieving 557 points in science, 542 in mathematics and 538 in reading.

Emirati students also improved compared with 2022, with their average scores rising by 31 points in mathematics, 30 in science and 18 in reading.

Sheikh Hamdan Responds

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said the results reflected the continued progress of Dubai’s education system, adding that the achievement fulfilled one of the key objectives of the Dubai Education Strategy 33.

He stressed that Dubai’s goal is to ensure every student has access to high-quality education, future-ready skills and broader opportunities for success. He also called on the Knowledge and Human Development Authority to accelerate the development of the education system.