50 education & training companies in Dubai ranked by 1-year headcount growth. The top 10 are free below, each with a short data note. The full ranked list of 50 is a CSV + Excel download.
Edition October 2026 · updated 2026-10-09 · source: licensed B2B firmographic and technographic data
Key numbers
- Median 1-year headcount growth: 40.8% across 50 companies (range 24.3% to 860.0%). 6 of 50 at least doubled their headcount; 1 figure above 200% is labelled estimated.
- Size mix: 10–19 employees: 3, 20–49 employees: 17, 50–99 employees: 15, 100–249 employees: 8, 250–499 employees: 7. The most common band is 20–49 (34%).
- Main sub-industries: K-12 Schools (25), Training (20), Colleges & Universities (4).
- Largest company on the list: GEMS Founders School - Al Mizhar (250–499 employees, 88.5% growth). 20 of 50 have fewer than 50 employees.
- Versus the whole October 2026 dataset (3246 companies), this page's median is higher: 40.8% vs 22.1%.
- Same sector by city (median growth): Abu Dhabi 22.9% (n=50), Doha 16.6% (n=50), Dubai 40.8% (n=50), Riyadh 13.9% (n=50), Sharjah 16.1% (n=39), Jeddah 11.7% (n=29), Muscat 9.2% (n=29), Kuwait City 17.5% (n=22), Dammam 19.4% (n=12), Manama 11.5% (n=11).
- Same location by sector (median growth): professional services 65.9% (n=50), retail & e-commerce 53.1% (n=50), construction 51.5% (n=50), IT services & software 50.9% (n=50), manufacturing 50.0% (n=50), education & training 40.8% (n=50), freight & logistics 37.5% (n=50), real estate 36.5% (n=50), hospitality & restaurant 34.6% (n=51), marketing & advertising agency 33.8% (n=50), healthcare & clinic 22.9% (n=50), facilities management & cleaning 19.5% (n=44).
Top 10 by headcount growth
| # | Company | Industry | Size band | 1-yr growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ECMIT College | Colleges & Universities | 250–499 | 860.0% (estimated) |
| 2 | PACE MBS Dubai | K-12 Schools | 50–99 | 200.0% |
| 3 | Career Launcher UAE | Training | 250–499 | 100.0% |
| 4 | British Council Library | Training | 100–249 | 100.0% |
| 5 | Philadelphia Private School | K-12 Schools | 50–99 | 100.0% |
| 6 | NEXT Education Group | Colleges & Universities | 10–19 | 100.0% |
| 7 | UniHawk Global | Training | 20–49 | 96.9% |
| 8 | GEMS Founders School - Al Mizhar | K-12 Schools | 250–499 | 88.5% |
| 9 | The Millennium School | K-12 Schools | 50–99 | 71.1% |
| 10 | St Mary's Catholic High School, Dubai | K-12 Schools | 100–249 | 68.1% |
| + 40 more companies, ranked 11–50, in the full list | ||||
#1 ECMIT College
Headcount grew an estimated 860.0% in 12 months, 21.1× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #1 of 7 companies here in the 250–499-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: Colleges & Universities; revenue band $25M-$50M. Growth above 200% comes from a small starting headcount, so treat it as an estimate.
#2 PACE MBS Dubai
Headcount grew 200.0% in 12 months, 4.9× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #1 of 15 companies here in the 50–99-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: K-12 Schools; revenue band $1M-$5M.
#3 Career Launcher UAE
Headcount grew 100.0% in 12 months, 2.5× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #2 of 7 companies here in the 250–499-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: Training; revenue band $10M-$25M.
#4 British Council Library
Headcount grew 100.0% in 12 months, 2.5× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #1 of 8 companies here in the 100–249-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: Training; revenue band $50M-$100M.
#5 Philadelphia Private School
Headcount grew 100.0% in 12 months, 2.5× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #2 of 15 companies here in the 50–99-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: K-12 Schools; revenue band $10M-$25M.
#6 NEXT Education Group
Headcount grew 100.0% in 12 months, 2.5× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #1 of 3 companies here in the 10–19-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: Colleges & Universities; revenue band $5M-$10M.
#7 UniHawk Global
Headcount grew 96.9% in 12 months, 2.4× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #1 of 17 companies here in the 20–49-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: Training; revenue band $1M-$5M.
#8 GEMS Founders School - Al Mizhar
Headcount grew 88.5% in 12 months, 2.2× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #3 of 7 companies here in the 250–499-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: K-12 Schools; revenue band $25M-$50M.
#9 The Millennium School
Headcount grew 71.1% in 12 months, 1.7× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #3 of 15 companies here in the 50–99-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: K-12 Schools; revenue band $25M-$50M.
#10 St Mary's Catholic High School, Dubai
Headcount grew 68.1% in 12 months, 1.7× this ranking's median of 40.8%, #2 of 8 companies here in the 100–249-employee band. Based in Dubai, UAE; primary sub-industry: K-12 Schools; revenue band $10M-$25M.
Get the full list
CSV + Excel + PDF with every company on this page (name, website, city, industry and sub-industry, size band, employee count, growth and a careers-page search link). We reply with a payment link and send the files the same day. One-time $7, 14-day refund.
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Methodology
Source: licensed B2B firmographic and technographic data, pulled 9 Oct 2026; page updated 2026-10-09. Scope: companies headquartered in the city with 10–500 employees and at least 10 data profiles; the top 50 by 1-year headcount growth per industry, after removing likely local branches of foreign or 1,000+ staff groups; companies with zero or negative growth are left out. Growth is the modelled change in the company's own employee count over the last 12 months; values above 200% are labelled estimated because they come from small headcounts. Location is the company's headquarters city; firms headquartered elsewhere with large local offices are not included, and likely local branches of foreign or 1,000+ staff groups were removed by a name/website rule that can miss some branches. Some companies are local branches of larger groups; the size band is for the local entity. Figures move between monthly editions. Company-level data only: no personal names, emails or phone numbers.
We publish a ranking only when at least 15 companies qualify, and skip a page when its top 10 would repeat another page.
FAQ
- Which education & training company in Dubai grew fastest this year?
- In the October 2026 edition, ECMIT College ranks first with 860.0% (estimated) 1-year headcount growth, followed by PACE MBS Dubai (200.0%) and Career Launcher UAE (100.0%).
- How fast are education & training SMBs in Dubai growing?
- The median company on this list grew headcount by 40.8% in 12 months. This is a list of fast growers, not a sector average.
- What does "growth" mean here?
- The change in the company's own employee count over the last 12 months, modelled from licensed B2B firmographic data. It is not revenue growth and not a count of open vacancies.
- Why do some figures say "estimated"?
- Growth above 200% usually comes from a small starting headcount, so a few hires move the percentage a lot. We keep these companies but label the figure.
- What is in the paid list?
- All 50 companies on this page with website, city, industry, size band and growth, as CSV and Excel. Company-level only: no personal contact details.
- How often is this updated?
- Monthly. Each edition is dated; this one is October 2026.