Study medicine in India for less than the cost of an iPhone? NEET score, MBBS admissions – What UAE students need to know

Abu Dhabi: While many Non-Resident Indian (NRI) families believe that studying medicine requires paying hefty annual fees, an education expert has revealed that UAE students can secure a seat in top government medical colleges in India for under Dh1,000 a year.
Speaking at the Gulf News Edufair in Abu Dhabi, Ameen K, Head of Operations at Unique World Education, shared real-life examples and information that could significantly reduce higher education costs for Indian students in the UAE.

“Many students assume they need to pay up to 25 lakh Indian rupees (about Dh110,000) annually for MBBS, totalling around 1.5 crore Indian rupees (about Dh650,000). But through NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test), students can access government medical colleges where fees can be as low as 18,000 Indian rupees per year, which is not even Dh1,000,” Ameen said speaking on the topic ‘UAE students: MBBS for Dh1,000 and engineering under Dh5,000 a year in India’.

NEET is an all-India medical entrance exam conducted in India for admission to undergraduate medical courses. Ameen cited the example of Fathimath Hana, a student from Unique World Education’s Abu Dhabi branch, who scored 677 out of 720 in NEET and secured admission to a government medical college in India. She pays just 18,000 Indian rupees annually, meaning her five-year course will cost under 100,000 Indian rupees (about Dh4,300), which is less than the price of an iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Ameen noted that NEET is mandatory for Indian students pursuing an MBBS degree abroad, including in the UAE, if they intend to practice medicine in India. In addition to NEET, students must also clear the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) to practice in India. However, an exception applies to students studying MBBS in the following five English-speaking countries: the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
“If you are studying in these countries, you don’t need to write NEET or FMGE.”

Turning to engineering, Ameen explained that Indian students must clear the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) to gain admission to top institutes such as Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), National Institutes of Technology (NITs), and Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs).
“Over 1.5 million students attempt the JEE Main annually, but only 250,000 qualify for the JEE Advanced.”

He urged UAE-based students to take advantage of the DASA (Direct Admission of Students Abroad) scheme, which reserves seats for NRIs in premier engineering colleges.
“Many students don’t know about this opportunity. Those who do are getting seats in NITs and IIITs.”

Ameen advised students to begin their preparation early – by Grade 8 or 9 – for NEET or JEE. “Opportunities exist, especially for GCC-based students, but they remain underutilised,” he said, stressing the need for awareness and structured preparation.