Swiss International Scientific School

Located in Dubai Healthcare City, the Swiss International Scientific School Dubai (SISD) is an international day and boarding school dedicated to inspiring confident, curious and lifelong learners. The design responds to SISD’s ambition to create an innovative environment for scientific education. Its architectural identity is shaped through a layered approach, bringing together the school’s functional requirements, environmental performance and references to Swiss vernacular architecture.

At the heart of the design is an energy-efficiency modelling process, which informed the building’s form, orientation and spatial arrangement. Contemporary materials, technologies and passive design strategies were carefully integrated to support the Swiss Minergie standard, with an emphasis on daylighting, thermal insulation and reduced energy consumption.

DSA oversaw the design and construction of the project, coordinating the documentation required for Minergie certification and integrating the energy consultant’s requirements throughout the overall design. The result is a distinctive educational environment that balances performance, identity and wellbeing, while supporting collaboration, discovery and academic excellence.