The submission deadline is Monday 14 September, 11.59pm Gulf Standard Time. Unfortunately, submissions received after this deadline will not be included.

When you register your nomination, you will be taken to a page where you can download the nomination packs for MENA School Excellence Awards 2027.

The submission window will open in June and you will be able to submit completed nominations and your piece of evidence by completing the form here - MENA School Excellence Awards - Submit Nomination 2027

If you have queries regarding your submission, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  

Following the first round of judging, the shortlist will be announced for each category in November 2026. Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony in March 2027.

We wish everyone the best of luck!

Nomination criteria

The judges will be looking for evidence of excellent practice during the last academic year (2025-26) in the category area, including:

• the range of ways in which you demonstrate excellence
• specific examples of activities or projects that make your school exceptional in this area, with tangible results and outcomes
• specific examples of ways that individuals or teams have contributed to organisational change and culture
• the impact on your school community – pupils, staff, families and stakeholders.

Think carefully about your context, the action you’ve taken and its impact. Use the prompts on the form to guide you (e.g. suggested evidence or examples of impact).

Nomination format

Nominations will be submitted using the nomination form, which is downloadable once you have registered your interest - MENA School Excellence Awards - Register your interest 

You are asked to respond to three or four questions, specific to the category. The total word count for responses to these questions must not exceed 850 words. Any submissions exceeding this will be discounted from judging.

Each awards entry is scored on the nomination form and on one piece of additional evidence which must be submitted.

Each nomination form gives the sources of evidence that can be included for that particular award.

These include:

• a maximum of three slides g. PowerPoint/Google slides, for the purpose of presenting data, graphs, information or images as relevant to your submission.
• a link to a short video or video clips, maximum cumulative length of three minutes.
• press releases, testimonials, survey results.

Judging process

Each category is appointed a judging panel. The panel will be a mixture of education specialists, experts from global education and leaders from international education. Each panel is carefully constructed to ensure no conflicts of interest.

The judging panel will read and score all entries. The panels meet to discuss results and agree the winning entry.

The judges are asked to base their decisions and scoring solely on the submission and any accompanying information.

Confidentiality

Submissions in their entirety are not shared in the public domain. However, please be mindful of including confidential material or identifiable personal data, and avoid this unless necessary to your submission.

You are asked to provide a summary statement on the nomination form. This summary, or an edited version thereof, will be published on the MENA School Excellence Awards website if your entry is shortlisted. Please ensure that this summary statement does not include any confidential or other information that you do not wish to see in the public domain.

Video permissions

If submitting a video, please check you have permission to share this. Videos may be linked and shared from the MENA School Excellence website, so participants should be aware that the video could be used for this purpose.

Submitting your nomination form

Once you have completed your nomination form, and selected your supporting evidence - please submit your entry here - MENA School Excellence Awards - Submit Nomination 2027