Over subscription to schools in Doha is a huge problem. I fully sympathise with those parents who have their kids on waiting lists. And I agree, the non-refundable application fee is a total scam which should be banned by the authorities.

As a possible short term solution you could try Cedars. We had our child enrolled there for a couple of terms whilst we were on a waiting list for another school. The standard of teaching is excellent (almost all teachers are British). To be honest, if if wasn't for the fact that their building is too small to offer PE we would have left our child enrolled there.

Anyway, just a thought. I know from experience how frustrating the whole schooling situation is here. Good luck.