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ISO 21001 Certification UAE — Expert Educational Organisations Management System Consultancy
Emarati Consultancy helps schools, universities, training providers and all educational organisations across UAE achieve ISO 21001 Certification UAE — the international standard for Educational Organisations Management Systems. As the UAE strengthens its position as a global education hub through UAE National Strategy for Education 2031, KHDA School Improvement Framework, ADEK quality assurance programmes and the Ministry of Education’s national quality agenda — ISO 21001 is the internationally recognised management system credential that demonstrates educational quality to regulators, accreditation bodies, parents, students and international academic partners.
What Is ISO 21001 and How Does It Differ from ISO 9001?
ISO 21001 is the international standard for Educational Organisations Management Systems published by the International Organisation for Standardisation. Published as ISO 21001:2018 it is specifically designed for organisations that provide educational products and services — covering schools, universities, colleges, vocational training providers, professional development institutions, e-learning platforms, tutoring services and any organisation delivering education in any form through a defined curriculum.
ISO 21001 is built on the foundation of ISO 9001 for quality management — sharing the same High Level Structure and process approach — but adds education-specific requirements that ISO 9001 does not address. These include learner-centric principles that place student needs and learning outcomes at the centre of management system design, specific requirements for curriculum development and assessment processes, learner wellbeing and safeguarding obligations, inclusive education provisions for learners with special requirements and specific performance indicators focused on learning outcomes rather than general product and service quality metrics.
The critical difference between ISO 21001 and ISO 9001 for educational organisations is audience and focus. ISO 9001 measures how well your organisation delivers products and services to customers. ISO 21001 measures how well your institution delivers learning outcomes to students — with learner needs, educational effectiveness and institutional quality as the primary performance dimensions. Both standards can be implemented together and many UAE educational institutions hold both — ISO 21001 for educational management quality and ISO 9001 for broader institutional quality management and government procurement qualification.
Learn about ISO 21001 from ISO.org
What is an Educational Organisations Management System?
An Educational Organisations Management System — EOMS — is the structured management framework that ISO 21001 requires educational institutions to implement. The EOMS covers how your institution identifies learner needs, designs educational products and services to meet them, delivers educational experiences consistently, measures learning outcomes, responds to student and stakeholder feedback and continuously improves educational quality over time. An EOMS is not a curriculum standard — it does not tell you what to teach. It is a management system standard — it tells you how to manage the processes through which you teach, assess, support and improve learning outcomes for every student in your institution.
Why ISO 21001 Is Essential for UAE Educational Institutions in 2026
UAE National Strategy for Education 2031
The UAE National Strategy for Education 2031 positions the UAE as a global knowledge economy hub — targeting world-class educational outcomes, international institutional recognition and the development of a highly skilled UAE workforce aligned with the nation’s economic diversification agenda. Educational institutions contributing to UAE National Strategy for Education 2031 objectives are expected to demonstrate systematic quality management that is internationally benchmarked — and ISO 21001 is the internationally recognised EOMS standard that provides this benchmark. Institutions holding ISO 21001 certification demonstrate alignment with national educational strategy objectives in a way that internal quality assurance alone cannot.
KHDA School Improvement Framework — Dubai schools
The Knowledge and Human Development Authority regulates all private schools in Dubai — governing school licensing, inspection, quality rating and improvement planning. KHDA’s School Improvement Framework assesses institutional quality across leadership, teaching and learning, student outcomes and community engagement. ISO 21001 certification provides the documented management system evidence that supports KHDA inspection preparation — demonstrating systematic quality management across all areas the School Improvement Framework assesses. Dubai schools pursuing higher KHDA ratings consistently find that ISO 21001 implementation strengthens their management system evidence base across multiple inspection domains simultaneously.
ADEK quality assurance — Abu Dhabi schools and universities
The Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge regulates educational institutions across Abu Dhabi emirate — governing school and university licensing, quality assurance and accreditation. ADEK quality assurance frameworks emphasise systematic management, continuous improvement and evidence-based quality development — all of which ISO 21001 directly addresses. Educational institutions regulated by ADEK implement ISO 21001 to strengthen their quality management evidence base for licensing renewal, quality reviews and international accreditation applications.
ISO certification in Abu Dhabi
SPEA — Sharjah Private Education Authority
The Sharjah Private Education Authority regulates private schools across Sharjah emirate — applying quality standards and inspection frameworks that assess institutional management quality. ISO 21001 certification provides Sharjah private schools with a documented, independently audited management system that demonstrates educational quality to SPEA inspectors and supports institutional improvement planning aligned with SPEA regulatory expectations.
International accreditation support
UAE educational institutions pursuing international accreditation — from bodies such as CIS Council of International Schools, NEASC New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Middle States Association, WASC Western Association of Schools and Colleges and subject-specific programme accreditors — consistently find that ISO 21001 certification strengthens their accreditation applications by demonstrating internationally recognised management system quality that accreditation bodies recognise as evidence of institutional governance maturity.
Attract international students and partnerships
The UAE’s education market is internationally competitive — with schools, universities and training providers competing for students from across the region and globally. ISO 21001 certification demonstrates to prospective international students, their parents and international academic partners that your institution manages educational quality to internationally recognised standards — providing independently audited evidence of institutional quality that marketing claims alone cannot deliver.
Key Benefits of ISO 21001 Certification for UAE Educational Institutions
Demonstrate learner-centric quality management
ISO 21001 places learner needs at the centre of institutional management — requiring that curriculum design, teaching methodology, assessment processes and student support services are all systematically aligned with identified learner needs and desired learning outcomes. Certification demonstrates to students, parents, regulatory authorities and accreditation bodies that your institution’s management system is designed around educational effectiveness rather than administrative compliance.
Strengthen KHDA and ADEK inspection outcomes
ISO 21001 implementation systematically addresses the management system dimensions that KHDA, ADEK and SPEA inspections assess — leadership effectiveness, quality assurance processes, stakeholder communication, continuous improvement evidence and student outcomes measurement. Institutions that have implemented ISO 21001 approach regulatory inspections with documented management system evidence rather than assembling inspection preparation materials reactively.
Support international accreditation applications
ISO 21001 certification provides the institutional quality management evidence that international accreditation bodies assess alongside academic programme quality — demonstrating that governance, management systems and quality assurance processes meet internationally recognised standards as a foundation for programme-level accreditation.
Improve student satisfaction and learning outcomes
The process of implementing ISO 21001 requires institutions to systematically identify student and stakeholder needs, measure satisfaction, analyse learning outcome data and implement improvements. Most UAE educational institutions implementing ISO 21001 identify significant opportunities to improve student experience, teaching consistency and learning outcomes that were not visible before systematic quality measurement began.
Differentiate your institution in a competitive market
The UAE education market — from early childhood through higher education and professional training — is highly competitive. ISO 21001 certification provides an independently audited quality credential that differentiates certified institutions from competitors relying on marketing claims — and is increasingly recognised by parents, students and employers as a meaningful indicator of institutional quality commitment.
Inclusive education and special needs provision
ISO 21001 includes specific requirements for inclusive education — ensuring that learners with special educational requirements receive appropriate support and that institutional processes are designed to meet diverse learner needs. This inclusive education dimension is directly relevant to KHDA, ADEK and Ministry of Education inclusive education requirements and demonstrates institutional commitment to the full range of learner needs.
ISO 21001:2018 Requirements — What UAE Educational Institutions Must Implement
ISO 21001 follows the same High Level Structure as other modern ISO management standards. The education-specific requirements cover:
Understanding learner and stakeholder needs
Your institution must systematically identify the needs and expectations of all relevant stakeholders — learners, parents, employers, regulatory authorities, accreditation bodies and the wider community — and ensure that educational products and services are designed to satisfy those needs. Learner needs analysis must be documented, reviewed regularly and used to inform curriculum development and institutional improvement planning.
Educational leadership and institutional commitment
Senior leadership must demonstrate active commitment to educational quality — establishing institutional vision, quality objectives and the values that guide educational delivery. Leadership must ensure the management system has adequate resources, that quality is integrated into strategic planning and that the institution demonstrates accountability for educational outcomes to all stakeholders.
Curriculum design and educational product development
The processes through which educational programmes, courses and curriculum materials are developed must be documented and controlled — ensuring that curriculum design is aligned with learner needs, regulatory requirements, accreditation standards and desired learning outcomes. Curriculum review processes must be systematic, evidence-based and responsive to stakeholder feedback.
Teaching and learning delivery controls
All processes related to educational delivery — teaching, assessment, student support, resource provision and learning environment management — must be planned, controlled and monitored. Teaching quality must be assessed, teaching staff must be appropriately competent and pedagogical approaches must be aligned with the learning needs of the student population served.
Learner assessment and outcome measurement
Student assessment processes must be valid, reliable, consistent and aligned with curriculum objectives. Learning outcome measurement must be systematic — tracking student achievement data, identifying trends, analysing performance against institutional objectives and using outcome evidence to drive curriculum and teaching improvement.
Student wellbeing and safeguarding
ISO 21001 includes specific requirements for learner wellbeing — ensuring that the physical and psychological safety of students is systematically managed, that safeguarding policies are documented and implemented and that student welfare is integrated into institutional management rather than treated as a separate administrative function.
Stakeholder communication and feedback
Systematic communication processes must be established for all stakeholder groups — students, parents, staff, regulatory authorities and community partners. Feedback mechanisms must be operational and feedback findings must demonstrably influence institutional improvement decisions.
Continual improvement of educational quality
Non-conformities in educational quality must be addressed through corrective action with root cause analysis. The institution must demonstrate a genuine, ongoing commitment to improving educational outcomes, student satisfaction and institutional effectiveness over time — not just maintaining existing quality levels.
ISO 21001 Certification Process in UAE — Step by Step with Emarati Consultancy
Step 1 — Free educational quality consultation
We begin with a free consultation to understand your institution — your educational programmes, student population, regulatory obligations under KHDA, ADEK, SPEA or Ministry of Education and your current quality management maturity. We confirm the right scope for your ISO 21001 implementation and provide a transparent fixed-scope proposal before you commit to anything.
Step 2 — Learner and stakeholder needs analysis
We facilitate a systematic analysis of learner and stakeholder needs across your institution — identifying what students, parents, employers, regulatory authorities and accreditation bodies require from your educational products and services. This analysis drives all subsequent curriculum review, teaching quality and student support improvement work.
Step 3 — Gap analysis against ISO 21001:2018
We assess your current educational management practices against ISO 21001:2018 requirements — identifying existing quality management processes, curriculum development practices, assessment systems and stakeholder feedback mechanisms that already address the standard’s requirements and the gaps that need to be closed to achieve certification readiness.
Step 4 — EOMS documentation development
We develop all required EOMS documentation — educational quality policy, learner needs analysis records, curriculum development procedures, teaching quality assessment framework, student assessment and outcome measurement system, student wellbeing and safeguarding procedures, stakeholder communication framework, feedback analysis processes and continual improvement system — written specifically for your institution and UAE regulatory environment.
Step 5 — Implementation and educational quality controls
We work with your academic and administrative teams to implement quality management controls across teaching, assessment, student support and institutional governance — ensuring processes are understood and followed across all departments, campuses and educational programmes within the certification scope.
Step 6 — Staff awareness and educational quality training
We deliver targeted ISO 21001 awareness training to academic staff, administrative teams and leadership — covering their specific roles in the EOMS, the learner-centric principles of the standard and how the management system connects to KHDA, ADEK or other regulatory quality requirements they are familiar with.
Step 7 — Internal EOMS audit
We conduct a comprehensive internal audit of your Educational Organisations Management System before the external certification audit — assessing documentation completeness, implementation evidence and overall EOMS effectiveness. All non-conformities are resolved before the external assessor arrives.
Step 8 — Management review and corrective actions
We facilitate your first EOMS management review — ensuring institutional leadership evaluates student satisfaction data, learning outcome performance, stakeholder feedback analysis, regulatory compliance status and overall system effectiveness with documented outputs. All internal audit corrective actions are fully resolved before the external certification audit.
Step 9 — Certification audit and certificate issued
The accredited certification body conducts Stage 1 documentation review and Stage 2 on-site assessment of your EOMS. We coordinate everything, support your team throughout both stages and ensure your ISO 21001 certificate is issued efficiently. Valid for three years with annual surveillance audits.
ISO 21001 Certification Cost and Timeline in UAE — 2026
How much does ISO 21001 certification cost in UAE?
ISO 21001 cost depends on your institution’s size, the number of educational programmes within scope, the number of campuses and your current quality management maturity. Here are realistic 2026 figures covering both Emarati Consultancy fees and certification body audit fees combined:
| Institution Type | Size | Total Cost AED |
|---|---|---|
| Small school or training provider | Up to 200 students | AED 5,000 — 9,000 |
| Medium school or college | 200 to 1,000 students | AED 9,000 — 15,000 |
| Large school or university | 1,000+ students | AED 15,000 upward |
| Multi-campus institution | Multiple sites | Quote required |
Institutions already holding ISO 9001 can implement ISO 21001 more efficiently because the basic quality management system infrastructure is already in place — reducing the new implementation work to the education-specific elements of the standard.
Get a transparent fixed-scope quote
How long does ISO 21001 certification take in UAE?
| Institution Type | Status | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Small school or training provider | No existing QMS | 4 to 8 weeks |
| Medium school or college | Partial quality systems | 6 to 12 weeks |
| Large school or university | Multiple programmes | 10 to 16 weeks |
| Adding to existing ISO 9001 | Any size | 4 to 8 weeks |
The most time-consuming element of ISO 21001 implementation is the learner needs analysis and curriculum quality review — which requires genuine engagement from academic leadership and teaching staff rather than administrative documentation alone. Institutions where leadership actively champions the implementation consistently achieve certification faster than those where ISO 21001 is treated as an administrative compliance project.
Which UAE Educational Institutions Need ISO 21001 Certification?
Private schools in Dubai regulated by KHDA
Dubai’s private school sector — one of the largest and most internationally diverse in the world with over 200 private schools serving students from more than 200 nationalities — creates significant ISO 21001 demand. KHDA’s School Improvement Framework and inspection regime assess institutional quality across leadership, teaching and student outcomes — dimensions that ISO 21001 directly strengthens. Schools pursuing higher KHDA ratings and schools preparing for inspection use ISO 21001 implementation as a structured management improvement framework.
Schools and universities regulated by ADEK in Abu Dhabi
Educational institutions across Abu Dhabi emirate regulated by ADEK — including international schools, UAE national schools, universities and higher education institutions — implement ISO 21001 to strengthen quality management evidence for ADEK quality reviews, licensing renewal and international accreditation applications. UAE University, Khalifa University and Abu Dhabi University are among the institutions where ISO 21001 provides systematic quality management evidence for international academic partnership qualification.
Training providers and professional development institutions
Corporate training providers, professional certification bodies, vocational training centres and continuing education institutions across UAE free zones and mainland implement ISO 21001 to demonstrate educational quality credibility to corporate clients, government entities and international training programme partners. Training providers competing for government-funded training contracts or international corporate client programmes increasingly find ISO 21001 certification is a standard qualification criterion.
E-learning and digital education providers
Online education platforms, e-learning content developers and digital education technology companies implement ISO 21001 to demonstrate that their digital educational products and services meet the same management system quality standards as traditional educational institutions — satisfying the quality assurance requirements of corporate clients, government educational authorities and international distribution partners for digital learning content.
Higher education institutions and universities
Universities, degree-awarding institutions and higher education colleges across UAE implement ISO 21001 alongside international accreditation programmes — using the EOMS framework as the management system foundation that supports programme-level accreditation applications and demonstrates institutional governance quality to international academic partners and student recruitment markets.
Early childhood education providers
Nurseries, early childhood education centres and kindergartens across UAE implement ISO 21001 to demonstrate commitment to educational quality management for the youngest learners — where parent trust, child safety and educational effectiveness are the primary quality dimensions that families assess when choosing early childhood education provision.
ISO 21001 Certification Across All UAE Emirates
ISO 21001 certification in Dubai
Emarati Consultancy serves private schools, training providers, universities and e-learning businesses across all Dubai districts and free zones. Dubai’s internationally diverse school community regulated by KHDA — with over 200 private schools serving students from more than 200 nationalities — creates the most active ISO 21001 certification market in the UAE.
ISO 21001 certification in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah
We support educational institutions across Abu Dhabi’s ADEK-regulated school and university sector and Sharjah’s extensive educational community — home to UAE University and a large network of schools and training providers regulated by SPEA. Sharjah’s identity as the UAE’s cultural and educational capital creates particular demand for internationally recognised educational quality credentials.
ISO 21001 certification across all remaining UAE emirates
Emarati Consultancy provides ISO 21001 consultancy across all UAE emirates — Ras Al Khaimah, Ajman, Fujairah, Al Ain and Umm Al Quwain with both in-person and remote consultation available.
ISO 21001 Compared to Related Standards
ISO 21001 vs ISO 9001
ISO 9001 is a general quality management standard applicable across all industries — focused on delivering consistent products and services to customers. ISO 21001 is specifically designed for educational organisations — adding learner-centric principles, curriculum development requirements, student wellbeing obligations and learning outcome measurement that ISO 9001 does not require. Educational institutions typically need ISO 21001 as their primary quality credential — with ISO 9001 additionally required for government tender qualification or procurement processes where ISO 21001 alone is not sufficient.
ISO 21001 vs ISO 27001
ISO 27001 addresses information security management — protecting student data, administrative records and digital learning systems from security threats. UAE PDPL data protection obligations apply to educational institutions processing student personal data. Educational institutions implementing both ISO 21001 for educational quality management and ISO 27001 for student data security provide comprehensive governance covering both educational effectiveness and data protection — the combination increasingly expected by international accreditation bodies assessing institutional governance maturity.
ISO 21001 and ISO 42001 — educational AI governance
ISO 42001 governs artificial intelligence management — ensuring responsible AI development and deployment. UAE educational institutions adopting AI-assisted teaching tools, automated assessment systems, personalised learning platforms and AI-driven student support systems are increasingly implementing ISO 42001 alongside ISO 21001 — ensuring that educational AI deployment is governed with appropriate transparency, accountability and bias prevention controls alongside systematic educational quality management.
Why Choose Emarati Consultancy for ISO 21001 Certification in UAE?
We understand KHDA, ADEK, SPEA and Ministry of Education frameworks
Emarati Consultancy has direct knowledge of KHDA School Improvement Framework inspection criteria, ADEK quality assurance programme requirements, SPEA regulatory standards and the Ministry of Education’s national quality agenda. We implement EOMS frameworks that satisfy both ISO 21001 certification requirements and UAE educational regulatory quality expectations — ensuring your management system strengthens your regulatory position as well as your certification credential.
We understand the educational sector’s unique implementation challenges
ISO 21001 implementation in educational institutions faces specific challenges that management system implementations in commercial organisations do not. Academic staff engagement requires a different approach than operational staff training. Curriculum quality review requires academic leadership involvement that administrative project management cannot substitute. Student outcome measurement requires educational data infrastructure that many institutions have not systematically built. Emarati Consultancy’s educational sector implementation experience addresses each of these challenges specifically.
We align implementation with inspection preparation
For schools approaching KHDA or ADEK inspections, Emarati Consultancy structures ISO 21001 implementation to simultaneously strengthen inspection evidence across all quality domains — making the certification investment serve both the ISO credential and the regulatory inspection outcome rather than treating them as separate projects.
All 17 ISO standards under one roof
If your institution also needs ISO 9001 for broader quality management, ISO 27001 for student data security or ISO 27701 for privacy information management — Emarati Consultancy handles everything. One team, one relationship, every certification your UAE educational institution needs.
Frequently Asked Questions — ISO 21001 Certification UAE
- What is ISO 21001 certification and why do UAE educational institutions need it?
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ISO 21001 certification is formal independent verification that your institution's Educational Organisations Management System meets the requirements of the ISO 21001:2018 international standard. UAE educational institutions need it to demonstrate systematic educational quality management to KHDA, ADEK, SPEA and Ministry of Education regulatory frameworks, to strengthen international accreditation applications, to differentiate in a competitive education market and to demonstrate to parents and students that educational quality is systematically managed rather than informally assumed.
- Does ISO 21001 replace KHDA inspection or ADEK quality review?
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No. ISO 21001 is a voluntary international management system standard — it does not replace KHDA inspection, ADEK quality review or any other UAE regulatory quality assessment. What ISO 21001 does is strengthen your management system evidence base for these assessments — providing independently audited quality management documentation that supports rather than substitutes for regulatory compliance. Schools with ISO 21001 certification approach KHDA and ADEK inspections with stronger management system evidence than those without — but the inspection process remains a separate regulatory requirement.
- What types of educational organisations can get ISO 21001 certified?
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ISO 21001 applies to any organisation providing educational products and services through a defined curriculum — including private schools at all levels, universities and higher education institutions, vocational and technical training providers, professional development and continuing education organisations, corporate training departments, e-learning platforms, tutoring services, early childhood education providers and language schools. If your organisation delivers structured learning to identifiable learners it is within the scope of ISO 21001.
- How long does ISO 21001 certification take in UAE?
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Small UAE educational institutions and training providers typically achieve ISO 21001 certification in 4 to 8 weeks. Medium schools and colleges require 6 to 12 weeks. Large schools and universities need 10 to 16 weeks. Institutions already holding ISO 9001 achieve ISO 21001 more efficiently — typically 4 to 8 weeks regardless of size — because the basic quality management system infrastructure is already in place. The learner needs analysis and curriculum quality review are the most time-consuming elements.
- How much does ISO 21001 certification cost in UAE?
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ISO 21001 for small UAE schools and training providers costs from AED 5,000 covering consultancy and certification body fees. Medium schools and colleges pay AED 9,000 to AED 15,000. Large schools and universities from AED 15,000 upward. Institutions already holding ISO 9001 achieve ISO 21001 at lower cost because foundational quality management work is already complete. Contact Emarati Consultancy for a transparent fixed-scope quote.
- Can ISO 21001 help a Dubai school improve its KHDA rating?
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Yes — indirectly. KHDA's School Improvement Framework assesses institutional quality across leadership, teaching and learning, student outcomes and community engagement. ISO 21001 implementation systematically strengthens the management system evidence across all of these inspection domains — providing documented quality management processes, student outcome measurement systems and stakeholder feedback mechanisms that directly address the dimensions KHDA inspectors assess. Schools that implement ISO 21001 as part of a genuine quality improvement programme consistently find their management system evidence base strengthens across multiple KHDA inspection areas simultaneously.
- Is ISO 21001 recognised by international accreditation bodies?
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Yes. International accreditation bodies — including CIS Council of International Schools, regional accreditation associations and programme-specific accreditors — recognise ISO 21001 as evidence of institutional management system quality that supports accreditation applications. ISO 21001 certification does not replace accreditation — but it provides the institutional quality management evidence that strengthens accreditation readiness and demonstrates governance maturity to accrediting bodies assessing institutional infrastructure alongside academic programme quality.
- Does Emarati Consultancy provide ISO 21001 consultancy across all UAE emirates?
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Yes. Emarati Consultancy provides ISO 21001 certification consultancy across all seven UAE emirates — Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, Al Ain and Umm Al Quwain — with both in-person and remote consultation available. Our consultants have direct knowledge of KHDA School Improvement Framework requirements, ADEK quality assurance processes, SPEA regulatory standards and the Ministry of Education's national quality agenda across all UAE educational institution types.
Get ISO 21001 Certified in UAE — Demonstrate Educational Quality Through Independent Verification
ISO 21001 certification transforms your institution’s educational quality commitment from a stated value into independently verified management system evidence. In the UAE’s competitive education market — where KHDA and ADEK inspections assess management quality, international accreditation bodies evaluate institutional governance and parents and students choose institutions based on demonstrated quality credentials — that distinction matters significantly.
Whether you are a Dubai private school strengthening your KHDA inspection evidence base, an Abu Dhabi university supporting international accreditation applications, a corporate training provider qualifying for government-funded programmes or an e-learning business demonstrating digital educational quality to international distribution partners — Emarati Consultancy has the educational management expertise, UAE regulatory knowledge and ISO 21001 implementation experience to guide your institution through certification efficiently and successfully.
Phone: +971 52 856 0299 Email: info@emaraticonsultancy.ae Office: City Bay Business Centre, Office 303, Near Abu Bakr Metro Station, Dubai, UAE
