Study in Qatar

Higher education in Qatar is overseen by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, which licenses institutions and programmes and advises students to check that an institution is licensed on its website before enrolling: • Foundation programme: for students who do not yet meet the English or maths requirements. • Bachelor’s: usually 4 years (about 120–130 credit hours); 6 years for medicine and dentistry. • Master’s: one to two and a half years depending on the programme. • PhD: about 3.5 to 4 years at HBKU, for example. Most programmes, and all Education City universities, teach in English; Arabic is used in colleges such as Sharia and Law and some other programmes at Qatar University, and at the Doha Institute, which expects students to work in both Arabic and English. The academic year starts in late August, and some universities also admit students for the spring semester (January).

1) Qatar University (bachelor’s): apply online at apply.qu.edu.qa; Fall 2026 applications closed on 24 June 2026. From Fall 2027 the minimum secondary-school average is 75%, 80% for pharmacy and 90% for medicine and dentistry. To skip the Foundation programme in English-taught colleges you need IELTS Academic 5.5 or TOEFL iBT 61. International students must submit the online visa application in the same window, or the application is not considered. Outstanding students are considered for scholarships automatically with the admission application. 2) Qatar University graduate study: a minimum GPA of 2.8 for master’s and 3.0 for PhD, proof of English, and the GRE or GMAT for some PhD programmes. 3) HBKU: graduate applications open on 1 October 2026; the deadline for international graduate applicants is 1 February 2027 and for bachelor’s applicants 1 March 2027. Scholarships are considered within the admission application, with no separate form. 4) Doha Institute: the deadline for 2027/2028 is 15 January 2027, with the Tamim (merit) and Sanad (need-based) scholarships. 5) Education City universities: apply directly to each university and request Qatar Foundation financial aid around the same deadlines (November to February).

Fees vary widely between universities (QR 1 ≈ US$0.27): • Qatar University: for students starting from Fall 2026, QR 1,200–1,700 per credit hour (QR 1,600 for engineering and pharmacy), roughly QR 36,000–51,000 a year; medicine costs QR 77,800–149,000 a year. Graduate study costs QR 2,200 per credit hour (QR 2,600 for the MBA). • HBKU: QR 2,500–4,000 per credit hour for graduate programmes (for example QR 132,000 for a whole science or engineering master’s), with a 60–75% waiver for master’s and 100% for PhD students on HBKU scholarships. • US branch campuses in Education City: about US$67,000–75,000 a year (Georgetown US$74,520 for 2026–27); most international students rely on financial aid. Living costs: Qatar Foundation student housing costs QR 10,100–13,002 per semester, and universities estimate non-tuition costs (housing, food, transport, personal) at about US$12,800–14,300 per academic year — roughly US$1,400–1,600 a month. Off-campus housing is usually more expensive.

In Qatar the university sponsors international students and obtains their entry visa and student residence permit. At Qatar University, for example: 1) Submit the online visa application together with, and in the same window as, the admission application; a committee decides. 2) Documents: a passport valid for at least one year; a financial sponsorship declaration from a third party (not the student) with their passport or QID; proof of the sponsor’s means — a QR 20,000 bank guarantee from a Qatari bank in favour of QU if the sponsor lives in Qatar, or six months of bank statements if abroad; a health evaluation form signed by a doctor in your country; a police clearance certificate; and parental consent for bachelor’s students. 3) After arrival: a medical examination and fingerprinting, then your Qatar ID (QID) is issued; new students must not leave Qatar before the residence process is complete. Students without a scholarship pay the entry visa, residence permit and any health insurance fees. Other universities, such as UDST, also obtain student visas and residence permits for their international students — check your university’s international office for its own requirements.

Work available to international students on a student residence permit is mainly on campus through student employment programmes: • Qatar University: up to 20 hours a week (5 hours a day on study days) and a maximum of 900 hours over the whole degree; bachelor’s students must first complete 24 credit hours with a GPA of at least 2.5. • HBKU: graduate students on a stipend work 10 hours a week as research assistants and may work up to 20 hours in total; teaching assistants earn QR 50 an hour. We found no official rules on off-campus work for student residents, so ask your university before accepting any outside job. After graduation the student residence ends: Qatar University requires it to be cancelled within 5 days of receiving the degree and the graduate to leave Qatar; staying on requires a new residence through an employer.