After announcing the results… 8 documents that the student must prepare before applying to the university

With the announcement of high school results and the start of the university admission season, thousands of students begin a new journey that is no less important than the exams themselves, as they must prepare a set of basic documents required by universities to complete admission files, whether inside or outside the UAE.

The university admission officer in the Department of Prospective Students at Heriot-Watt University Dubai, Gary Fernandez, confirmed to Emirates Al-Youm that many students delay completing their applications due to a lack of some documents, despite obtaining the required grades. He pointed out that preparing the documents early contributes to accelerating the study of the application, and gives the student a greater opportunity to obtain his seat in a timely manner. Universities’ requirements vary from one institution to another, but there is a set of basic documents that the majority of universities require when applying.

Fernandez stated that the “high school certificate” is the main document in the admission file, as universities rely on the final average and subject results to determine the student’s eligibility to enroll in the required major, and the certificate is now issued electronically through the student portal, and is equipped with a quick response code “QR Code”, which allows universities to verify its authenticity electronically.

He also explained that the second document is the “transcript,” as some universities request a detailed transcript that shows the student’s grades in academic subjects, especially when comparing applicants or applying for some majors that depend on the grades of specific subjects.

The third document is the “Emirates ID”, which is one of the basic documents to prove the student’s identity and complete registration procedures in most universities within the country. Fernandez pointed out that the “passport” is one of the basic documents for registration and admission procedures, as it is used to prove personal data, and it is essential when applying to universities outside the country, as some local universities require for international students.

He stressed the importance of providing an “English language proficiency certificate” within the documents, as universities may require, depending on their specialization or admission system, proof of the level of the English language through approved tests, such as: IELTS, TOEFL, or EmSAT English, while some universities grant conditional admission to students who have not yet met the language requirements.

He pointed out that the “personal photo” is one of the documents required when applying to the university, as most universities require uploading a recent personal photo that conforms to the approved specifications to complete the student’s file and issue the university card.

As for the seventh document, it is the “certificate of equivalence or attestation when necessary,” as students applying to universities outside the country, or in some special cases, may need to have the certificate attested or complete its equivalency procedures according to the requirements of the educational institution or the country in which they will study.

While talking about the eighth document, he said that it represents “any additional documents according to the specialization.” It is possible that some academic programs may request additional documents, such as a CV, a letter of motivation, letters of recommendation, or a “portfolio” in the specializations of design, arts, and architecture, or passing a personal interview, or an admission test for some programs.

University admission officials in a number of higher education institutions advised students to create an electronic file that includes all documents in high-quality PDF formats, while ensuring the clarity of the data and the validity of the documents before starting the application, to avoid any delay in studying the application or completing the admission procedures.

They emphasized that preparing documents early gives the student greater flexibility in applying to more than one university at the same time, and saves a lot of time during a season that usually witnesses a high concentration of applications.