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  2. Admissions
  3. Undergraduate
  4. Admissions Requirements

Undergraduate



Admission and Registration

Applications for admission can be submitted online to the Office of Admissions and Registration prior to the beginning of each semester. To be eligible for admission, a student must have a secondary school certificate issued in the UAE or its equivalent as approved by the UAE Ministry of Education (MOE). The USTF Council for Academic Affairs (CfAA) determines the number of students be admitted to each degree program each semester, according to the university’s available resources, in light of the CAA ceiling (the number of students admitted to each degree program decided by the CAA of the MOE in the UAE).

  • General Admission Conditions

Holders of UAE Secondary School Certificate

Elite and Advanced Streams

  • Holders of a Secondary School Certificate (SSC), Elite Streem or Advanced Stream (MOE), or equivalent, are eligible for admission in any college of the University if they satisfy the admission requirements for the degree program illustrated in the table of admission requirements.

General Stream

  • Holders of a Secondary School Certificate (SSC), General Stream (MOE), or equivalent, are eligible for admission in colleges of Engineering and Technology, Business Administration, Humanities and Sciences, and Law if they satisfy the admission requirements for the degree program illustrated in the table of admission requirements.

The decision to admit a student is made on a competitive basis, taking into account the number of available seats as determined by the individual college and the applicant’s final secondary school examination score.

Holders of Foreign Secondary School Certificates

Applications made by holders of foreign secondary school certificates will be considered in case of compliance with the terms and conditions mentioned in Ministerial Decision Number 4443 for the year 2001, and Ministerial Decision Number 199 for the year 2019, regarding the Equivalency of Foreign Secondary School Certificates obtained inside or outside the UAE (Link:https://u.ae/ar-ae/information-and-services/education/school-education-k-12/joining-k-12-education/equalising-high-school-certificates). USTF accepts students holders of foreign secondary school certificates, subject to:

  • The certificate is awarded after at least 12 years of schooling.
  • Submission of an equivalency certificate from the MOE in the UAE.

Language Proficiency

Full admission to programs is given only to applicants who have the required minimum scores of EmSAT English or equivalent for the different programs as illustrated in the table of admission requirements.   Equivalent scores of the EmSAT English 1100 are the TOEFL 500 (paper-based test), 61 in TOEFL (iBT), and Band 5 in IELTS (Academic). English Proficiency scores are accepted only if they were obtained less than two years from the admission date. Institutional TOEFL score is considered only when the test is taken at an AMIDEAST Center.

Students who do not satisfy the mentioned minimum Language proficiency requirement, illustrated in the table of admission requirements, may begin their studies with conditional admission. During their first semester, they will be required to enroll in the Intensive EmSAT Program (IEP) offered by the College of Humanities and Sciences, until they obtain the required English EmSAT score or equivalent.

Admission on Probation

According to the CAA directions regarding Accreditation of Foundation Programs for Undergraduate Admission, USTF does not accept applicants holding a high-school score below the required admission score of less than 60%. However, USTF can accept on probation basis students holding MOE-accredited higher diploma certificates, subject to achieving an overall Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)  of C at the end of their first semester at the University.

Re-Admission

  • New students who have missed two consecutive semesters of enrollment (excluding the summer semester) at the University may apply for re-admission by completing the re-enrollment form which is available from the Office of Admissions and Registration and must satisfy admission requirements in effect at the time of re-admission. A new university Identification Card (ID) will be issued and the student should pay the non-refundable fee for the application.
  • Former students who have missed more than two consecutive semesters of enrollment at the University may apply for re-admission provided that they achieve the following:
  • The required average in secondary school certificate.
  • A valid English Proficiency Certificate with the required score.
  • Availability of vacant seats in the major.
  • Approval of the College Dean and Director of the Office of Admissions and Registration (OAR).
  • Payment of all debts.

A new university ID will be issued, and the student should pay the non-refundable fee for the application. If the Dean of the previous college and the (OAR) accept the student to continue in the same major, the previous courses which the student has studied will be considered if they are included in the new study plan.

Important Notes:

  • If the student was warned, he/she must transfer to another program providing that his/her CGPA for the courses to be transferred is 2.0 or higher.
  • If the student can graduate within the time allowed for completion of a degree program, re-enrollment of the student with the same ID and in the same program will be considered after the payment of the required fees.

Transfer Students from Accredit Institutions

Students from accredited institutions of higher education may apply for admission in one of USTF programs in the same field of study if they have been of good academic standing, i.e., their Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) is a least 2.0 on a scale of 4.0, or the equivalent, and if they are eligible to return to their current or formal institution (they have not been subject to disciplinary dismissal). However, those students who have not been of good academic standing (i.e. those with a CGPA of less than 2.0 on a scale of 4.0), will be allowed to transfer only to programs in a different field from the one in which they were enrolled at the institution they previously attended. Any transferred student is required to meet the English Language Proficiency condition.

The transfer of credited courses is considered for students who are transferring to a similar program to the one studied previously if:

  1. Their cumulative grade point average is at least 2.0 on a scale of 4.0 or the equivalent.
  2. The number of credit hours for the course is not less than that of the USTF equivalent course.
  3. The grade obtained on the previous course must have been at least C (2.0 on a 4.0 scale) irrespective of the course status (Satisfactory, Good, etc.), or the grade that corresponds to “Merit/Good” for institutions using a different grading scale.
  4. The course content at the institution previously attended should be similar to that of the corresponding course offered at USTF

If the transfer of a student with a CGPA less than 2.0 is accepted in a program within a different field of study, the transfer of credited General Education courses may be considered if points 2-4 listed above are fulfilled. If a student meets these transfer conditions but is unable to submit the course content that was covered previously, he/she may sit an examination set by the College after payment of a fee. The examination result will be used to determine whether the course will be transferred or not.

Only grades obtained from courses taken at USTF will be taken into account in the calculation of a student’s CGPA, i.e.: grades obtained from transferred courses at the previous institution will not be taken into account in the computation of the CGPA at USTF.

It is important to note that USTF does not grant transfer students a degree unless they successfully complete at least 50 percent of the credit hours of the program, including the majority of the final year courses at USTF.

 Documents Required for Admission

  • Application form, which may be obtained from the Office of Admissions and Registration, to be filled in by the applicant.
  • Equivalency certificate issued by the Ministry of Education in UAE for the holders of non-UAE high school certificates.
  • UAE Secondary School Certificate, or its equivalent, and grade transcript. Only certified copies are acceptable.
  • Photocopy of a valid passport and a residency visa (if applicable).
  • Photocopy of a valid Emirates ID Card (UAE residents only).
  • Copy of family book for local students.
  • Birth certificate.
  • Health certificate.
  • Status of UAE National Service for male students.
  • A valid certificate of good conduct issued by an official body.
  • Six passport-sized photographs with the applicant’s full name on the back of each.
  • A signed “declaration” by the applicant stating that he/she will observe university rules and regulations.
  • If available, certificates of EMSAT scores or equivalent according to the admission requirements of USTF academic programs are listed in the table of admission requirements.
  • Applications will be processed by the Office of Admissions and Registration only after the payment of application and registration fees.
    • Certification of Documents
  • Newly-admitted students are requested to have their documents certified before the end of the first semester of study; otherwise, their registration will be suspended.
  • Secondary school certificates obtained in the UAE must be certificated by the UAE Ministry of Education.
  • Secondary school certificates obtained abroad must be certificated by the Ministry of Education in the origin country, by either the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country of origin and the UAE embassy in that country, or by the embassy of the country which issued the certificate, and by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Course Registrations for New Students

  • Newly-admitted students who fulfill the admission requirements illustrated in the table of admission requirements.., will be allowed to register between 9 and 18 credit hours according to their study plan.
  • Newly-admitted students who did not fully fulfill the admission requirements are illustrated in Table 2.1. will be allowed to register according to an Undergraduate Admission Policy (Appendix 1).
  • Once a student’s selected courses have been approved by the academic advisor, and on payment of the tuition fees, the student will be given a timetable that states the name of each course, the schedule of classes, the name of the lecturer, and the number of the classroom or the laboratory in which the course is held.

Course Registration for Continuing Students

Colleges encourage non-warned students to use the early registration period to select courses in consultation with their academic advisors. The early registration period is specified in the academic calendar. Warned students and students who did not benefit from the early registration phase can register during the registration week.

Registered USTF students may take some courses outside USTF provided that they obtain the prior approval of the College Dean and Office of Admissions and Registration. Acceptance of the transfer of external courses is conducted according to the Transfer Admission Policy.

Adding and Dropping Courses

Students may add or drop courses only with the approval of their academic advisors. Students who add and drop courses during the approved period will not lose the fees paid for dropped courses. When adding/dropping courses, students should bear in mind that the minimum number of credit hours for which they may register is nine. The academic calendar specifies the period allocated for dropping courses without affecting the student’s academic record but without refund of fees. The academic calendar also specifies the last date for withdrawal from a course with a “W” grade without refund of fees. In this case, the course appears in the transcript with the letter “W” with no effect on the computation of the semester Grade Point Average GPA.

Study Load

A student’s “study load” is the number of credit hours for which he or she is registered during the semester. For the fall and spring semesters, the study load varies from 9 to 18 credit hours, where one credit hour refers to one lecture hour or two hours of practical study per week, lasting for fifteen weeks. For summer semesters, the study load varies from three to six credit hours. Students may increase their study load by three credit hours if they are expected to graduate at the end of the semester and their CGPA is at least 2.0

A student’s study load is up to six credit hours in a summer semester. However, independently of their academic standing, students will not be allowed to sign up for more than 9 credit hours during the two summer semesters of the academic year. the Undergraduate Admission Policy

 

Time Allowed for Completion of a Degree Program

The maximum time allowed for a student in which he/she may complete a degree program is a maximum of double the regular number of required semesters. In other words, a four-year bachelor's degree must be completed in a maximum of 16 regular semesters of enrolment in the program. The minimum time allowed to complete a degree for non-transfer students is a minimum of six regular semesters for four-year programs and six regular semesters for five-year programs.

The maximum and minimum number of semesters of enrolment for transfer students is determined after the deduction of the number of earned/transferred semesters (15 credits correspond to one semester) from the above limits. Suspended semesters are not counted in the time allowed for students to complete their degree.

Suspension of Registration

Newly-admitted students can suspend their studies only in their first semester, and they should register for courses in the next semester. Otherwise, he/she should apply for new admission. The total number of semesters for former students that can be suspended is four. However, suspension of registration for more than two consecutive semesters is not allowed. In all cases, the Office of Admissions and Registration should be notified in writing.

Right to Cancel Registration

The University reserves the right to cancel an offer of admission if the applicant fails to satisfy all requirements, or if it is found that admission was obtained through the use of incomplete, falsified, or altered information. In the case of withdrawal of registration from a matriculated student, credits earned at USTF will be withheld and no transcript will be issued to the student.

Change of Major for New Students

First-semester students may apply to transfer from one major to another within the University during the add-and-drop period. The application is processed through the Office of Admissions and Registration provided that:

  1. The applicant meets the admission requirements of the degree program to which he/she is applying.
  2. There is the availability of seats.
  3. Approval of the deans of both colleges concerned is obtained, along with approval from the Director of the Office of Admissions and Registration.

Transfer between Programs

Students may transfer from one program to another within the University provided that they satisfy items 2 and 3 of section 3.15. In addition, they must satisfy the following:

  1. The preceding semester’s GPA should be equivalent to that required by the new program; and
  2. The application for transfer should be submitted within the period specified in the academic calendar.

 

Orientation for New Students

USTF gives special attention and assistance to new students to ease the transition between life at high school and that of the University. At the beginning of each semester, USTF organizes orientation sessions for new students which enables them to meet the Vice Chancellors, Deans of the Colleges, Admission and Registration personnel, and Deanship of Students Affairs staff. This orientation also provides students with essential information about course registration, academic advising, important deadlines, and other related matters.