HEC announces ranking of Pakistani universities

ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has announced the ranking of Pakistani universities on the basis of quality teaching and research. Dr. Javaid R. Laghari, Chairperson HEC made the announcement at a press conference held at the Commission Secretariat on Thursday.

The primary purpose of the ranking exercise is to share with the general public a comprehensive data on the key issues that determine the state of higher education in a particular institution.

Institutions established after December 2008 as well as distance education universities are excluded from the ranking lists.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Laghari said that ranking is a quality indicator and this information will help shed light on key indicators of higher education institutions in Pakistan to allow students, parents, potential employers and all other stakeholders to make informed decisions regarding higher education institutions.

"It will also provide a transparent mechanism to universities on how they compare against their peers, and will inculcate a spirit of competition to raise the standard of education. The activity will also help promote a culture of participation in the world university rankings, which will help significantly in reflection of Pakistan's higher education development at the international level," hesaid.

Ranking criteria for the universities include student intake as well as graduates produced at BS, MS and PhD levels, number of qualified faculty members, student-teacher ratio, quality of research produced and published in journals of international repute, physical and technological infrastructure, international collaborations, resource generation and sports facilities.

Initiative of QS world university ranking was taken up by HEC with the objective to promote a culture of participation in the world university rankings for getting reasonable reflection of higher education development in the country. Keeping in view the national context and problems faced by the universities in Pakistan, the primarily identified QS world ranking criteria was amended as per feedback received from the higher education institutions.

The universities have been ranked specifically by category/area of specialization to make it logical. The sector-wise sorting has not been done to provide equal reflection to both the public and private sector institutions. Universities can only be comparable within the assigned category, comparisons to be made among different categories based on the above list will not be logical.

Overall top 10 universities announced by HEC including, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Islamabad, The Aga Khan University, Karachi, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, University of the Punjab, Lahore, National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad, Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, COMSATS Institute of Information Technology and Lahore University of Management Sciences, respectively.

In Agriculture/Veterinary category top five universities announced by HEC include, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, KPK Agriculture University, Peshawar and Sindh Agriculture University, Tandojam.

In Art & Design category, National College of Arts, Lahore and Indus Valley School of Arts and Architecture, Karachi.

In Computer Sciences & IT category, COMSAT Institute of Information Tech Islamabad, National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences, Islamabad, Qurtaba University D.I. Khan, Balochistan University of Information Technology and Management Sciences, Quetta and City University, Peshawar.

In Engineering & Technology category, Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Science, Islamabad, National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad, Ghulam Institute of Engineering and Technology, Swabi, University of Engineering and Technology, Taxila and Institute of Space Technology, Islamabad.

In General Universities (Large), University of the Punjab, Lahore, University of Karachi, Karachi, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, University of Peshawar, Peshawar and International Islamic University, Islamabad while General Universities (Other) include, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Government College University, Lahore, Gomal University, DI Khan, Kohat University of Science and Technology and The University of Azad Jammu & Kashmir.

In Business Education category, Lahore University of Management Sciences, Lahore, Institute of Business Administration, Karachi, Iqra University, Karachi, Sukkur Institute of Business Administration and National College of Business Administration & Economics, Lahore were declared as the top universities.

In Medical category, Aga Khan University, Karachi, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi, Isra University, Hyderabad and Khyber Medical University, Peshawar were declared top universities by the HEC. (PPI)