Moalims

Not a single Pakistani university failed to reach the top 100 ranked universities in Asia, according to the education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds. Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) topped the list of Pakistani universities appearing at 111th place in Asia, while the National University of Sciences and Technology trailed behind at 112th place. These rankings do not resemble those that were published by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) earlier in the year in which LUMS did not even make it to the top-ten list of Pakistani universities. This goes on to show the flawed metric through which the HEC measures the overall performance and quality of universities, and it is broadly symptomatic of the flawed approach towards higher education that is hallmark of the lack of importance given to education in Pakistan. An excessive focus on quantity without at the slightest addressing the qualitative concerns have resulted in a higher education system that is hollow from the inside.

The major issue concerning Pakistan’s universities is an excessive focus on degrees and the number of publications. Students who graduate in Pakistani universities lack the depth of knowledge that higher education is supposed to impart. This is mainly due to the abysmal quality of faculty in universities. As university professors focus on churning out the maximum amount of research without any regard to quality in order to reach the required number of papers out for the sake of their professional promotion, the intellectual enterprise on the whole suffers. To make matters worse it is also alleged that professors in Pakistan’s public universities indulge in widespread plagiarism, and thereby do not even contribute anything new to the academia with their publications. Such a deplorable state of affairs also has its impact on students of these universities. Not surprising that such professors can hardly deliver the quality of education that is expected of university professors. And the self-defeating cycle continues as students from these institutions with their half-baked ideas and inadequate education end up teaching in Pakistani universities. It is an unfortunate reality that all that most Pakistani universities produce is hordes of mere degree-holders who cannot back their qualifications with solid education.

The reason behind this abysmal state of affairs is lack of focus by government on higher education. Government has, historically, focused on primary education to increase literacy rate. It is indeed true that this policy was not merely pandering to improving a statistical indicator as it had behind it substantial wisdom. Naturally, primary education is important for a country that lacks an educated work force. Nevertheless, gross negligence of the higher education sector should not have accompanied this policy. Rather, the two should have been prioritised side by side. The result of this policy has been that in addition to lack of quality institutes of higher education, Pakistan lacks institutions of higher education altogether. Hence, those few who do not drop out of school and wish to continue their studies have very limited options. The need of the hour is for government to focus both on the quality and quantity of education. And this cannot be done unless significant funds are set out for the education sector and comprehensive policy is enacted for its development.*

News Reference