Frequently Asked Questions

The CAA is part of the United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research (MoHESR) and serves as the UAE Federal Government quality assurance agency for higher education. Working collaboratively with relevant international and local authorities in the Emirates, the CAA has a key leadership role in securing and developing the quality of higher education in the UAE.  

Licensure signifies that the institution has a mission appropriate to higher education and possesses the governance structure, regulations, policies and procedures, quality assurance measures, physical and financial resources, academic programmes, faculty and other personnel to accomplish its mission. Licensure applies to the entire institution and all its activities. In order to be licensed, the institution must meet ten standards that cover all major institutional activities. Licensure must be periodically renewed. A licensed institution is required to identify its status as licensed by the Ministry of Education in all documents and advertising and to comply with the Commission’s requirement for annual data reports.   

An accredited programme is a programme of study offered by a CAA-licensed institution that meets six of its quality assurance standards. These standards are designed to promote high quality institutions and to assure prospective students, their families, employers, and other interested parties, that licensed institutions meet standards of quality consistent with current international practice and professional judgment.

All undergraduate and postgraduate programmes being recruited to (as detailed on our website) are now accredited. 

A small number of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes are currently on Teach-Out (being withdrawn from the University) and these have not been accredited by the CAA. A list of these programmes can be found here. 

This is a significant milestone for Heriot-Watt University Dubai. It is an important acknowledgement of the high quality and standards of teaching and learning that the University has upheld in Dubai for the last almost two decades.  

Crucially, our graduates will be able to get their HWUD degrees recognised (a process previously called ‘attestation’) by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research so that they can: 

• pursue further degrees in CAA-accredited universities if they choose to;  
• work in government and government-related sectors across the UAE, Gulf and wider MENA region.   

To apply for recognition (attestation) from the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, please follow this link.  

Whilst HWUD cannot guarantee that the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research will attest the degrees of those alumni who graduated prior to our License being granted in January 2023, we are significantly encouraged to hear positive feedback from some alumni who have successfully put their certificates through the process. 

If you are an HWUD alumnus and would like to see if the Ministry will attest your certificate, please follow the instructions detailed here.  

You can read about the details of Institutional Licensure and Programme Accreditation on the CAA’s website, here. 

Since we operate in a Dubai Free Zone, we will continue to have a formal relationship with KHDA. We will continue to apply for our annual Education Services Permit through KHDA as well as our Training Activity Permit, approval for all training activities, and we will be required to submit the KHDA annual student census. There are a number of other smaller services and activities that will continue as well.