Admissions Information

Finding a school place in Doha can be a daunting experience – we are very well aware of the stresses involved and our Registrar will do her utmost to assist you to make the experience as smooth as possible.

Please contact our Registrar by phone +974 4459 2750 or e-mail admissions and she will be happy to answer any questions that you might have.

Our admissions process takes place throughout the academic year, however there may be waiting lists for some year groups. If the waiting list of a particular year group becomes too long we will close it for a short period of time until the size of the waiting list reduces. If the year group you require is currently listed as 'CLOSED' please sign up to the mailing list to be notified as soon as it reopens.

All children from Foundation Stage 1 to Year 8 are required to attend an age appropriate assessment here at DESS. For children in Years 3 to 7 external assessments can often be arranged if necessary.

Foundation Stage 1 is our largest intake therefore we set aside a dedicated assessment day to assess the children in a group setting. To find out more information regarding this please click here.

DESS operates all admissions under our Assessment Charter and in accordance with our admissions policies.

As per our admissions policy, priority placement is available for:

  1. Corporate Sponsored places - please contact your HR department to enquire whether a Corporate agreement exists with DESS.
  2. Children demonstrating excellence in academics, music and sports - this is determined by the school when reviewing supporting school reports and assessment.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

  1. All children must be in possession of a valid Qatari Residency Permit before starting school in Qatar.
  2. If transferring from a school outside of Qatar, there is a  Ministry of Education requirement to have your child's most recent school report attested.  
  3. Applications for children transferring from a school overseas or at a non British curriculum school within Qatar cannot be registered for the current academic year after 31st January.
  4. Applications for children transferring from a British curriculum school within Qatar can only be accepted up to 28th February.
  5. Applications will be reviewed and assessments will be carried out at the school’s discretion.
  6. Our waitlists are automatically rolled over on an annual basis

Electronic Devices in DESS

DESS began the introduction of Chromebooks in the classroom during academic year 2021/2022 for Years 3 and 4. The roll out will extend through to Year 6 students for academic year 2023/2024 and encompass each subsequent year group in turn each academic year thereafter concluding with year 8 in academic year 2025/2026. For more in-depth information regarding Chromebooks in the classroom please see our dedicated Chromebook Ordering and FAQ site.