This study evaluates and ranks the research efficiency of private universities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) using a two-stage Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) framework. 25 private universities with at least five years of establishment were included to ensure comparability and research maturity. In stage 1, the model considered input variables such as number of academic staff, research centers, and enrolled students. Stage 2 focused on outputs including publications, accredited programs, citations, patents, and industry partnerships. Results show that 56% of the universities (14 out of 25) achieved an efficiency score of 1, indicating they are on the DEA frontier. 11 universities (44%) exhibited varying degrees of inefficiency, with scores ranging from 0.33 to 0.89. Slack analysis revealed that publication output was the most common source of inefficiency, followed by accredited programs and citation impact, particularly in low-performing universities. For example, several institutions showed publication slacks exceeding 600 documents and citation gaps of more than 700, indicating underutilization of resources. These findings highlight the existence of a performance gap between top-tier and lower-performing universities. Efficient universities can serve as benchmark institutions, while moderate and low performers can use the identified slacks as improvement targets. The study aligns with the UAE Ministry of Education’s current focus on enhancing research productivity and impact across higher education institutions. The results provide actionable insights for university leaders and policymakers to strengthen research capacity, foster innovation, and advance the global competitiveness of the UAE’s private higher education sector.

Keywords

Data Envelopment Analysis, Research Efficiency, UAE Private Universities, Performance Ranking, Slack Analysis